Modern Fruit 
Marketing 



A Complete Treatise Covering 
Harvesting, Packing, Storing, 
Transporting and Selling of Fruit 



BY 

BLISS S. BROWN 

Professor of Horticulture in University of Maine 



ILLUSTRATED 



NEW YORK 

ORANGE JUDD COMPANY 

1916 



0*\ 

1p % 



Copyright, 1916, by 
ORANGE JUDD COMPANY 

All Rights Reserved 






NOV 17 1916 

[Printed In U. S. A.] 

©CU4464liS 



INTRODUCTION 

Agriculture is the Science, the Art and the Technique 
of supplying human wants from the products of the soil. 
This does not exactly correspond with the old definition, 
but is a readjustment to meet the needs of its modern 
application. The Latin word "agri," meaning field, 
and "horti," garden, have long since outgrown their use- 
fulness as a definition for present-day Agriculture or 
Horticulture. The tendency now is to increase the scope 
of the word Agriculture to include the Art, the Science, 
and the Technique of everything pertaining to farm 
products, and to delimit the meaning of Horticulture 
within narrower and narrower bounds. 

Formerly, Agriculture was considered to be the grow- 
ing of crops. When this was accomplished, the farmer's 
results were turned over to another set of people to dis- 
pose of as they saw fit. Later, along with production, 
was considered the problems of distribution, and Agri- 
culture expanded to include this work. Now, the mar- 
keting of farm products is everywhere considered as a 
legitimate part of Agriculture. 

The trend of the present leaders in the profession is 
to go one step farther and include in modern Agricul- 



VI 



INTRODUCTION 



ture the converting of the raw products of the farm 
into manufactured or finished articles, which supply 
human wants in the nature of Nourishment, Comforts 
or Pleasure. This is as it should be, for there is no 
plausible reason why the manufacture of flour from 
wheat, or the making of bread from flour is not as im- 
portant to agriculture as the chemistry or histology of 
the wheat plant itself. It is just as important to know 
how to make starch from corn, or cloth from cotton fiber, 
as it is to grow the plants themselves. 

In accordance with this modern interpretation of Agri- 
culture, the following classification is inserted as a pre- 
lude to a more extended discussion of the topic. 



GENERAL CLASSIFICATION OF AGRICULTURE 



fZOOTECHNY 

(Animal Technology) 



AGROTECHNY 

(Plant Technology) 



{Breedir 
Manage 
Uses, et 



ng 
geraent 



Agronomy. 



"Cereals 

Grasses 

Legumes 

Tubers 

Roots 

Corn 
^Cotton, etc. 



Tree Fruits 

Horticulture ■{ Small Fruits 

erb-like Fruits 



fTr 
i Sn 
lH, 



Olericulture Vegetables 

Floriculture Flowers 

Viticulture Grapes 

Landscape Architecture. Land Decoration 



INTRODUCTION Y {[ 

CLASSIFICATION OF HORTICULTURE 



HORTICULTURE 



r HERB-LIKE FRUITS. 



{ 



Banana 
Pineapple 
Cherimoyer 
'-Pawpaw 



Pomaceom 



Drupaceous , 



Citraceous. 



f Apples 
A Pears 
I Quinces 

(Peaches 
Plums 
Apricots 
Cherries 
Almonds 
Nectarines 

Oranges 

Lemons 

Limes 

Tangerines 

Citrons 

Pomelos 

Kumquats 

Shaddocks 



Moraceous . 



Nuciaceous. 



Figs 
Mulberries 



Walnuts 

Pecans 

Chestnuts 

Hickories 

Butternuts 

Pistachios 

Hazlenuts 

Brazilnuts 



Ebenaceous Persimmons 

Oleaceous Olives 

Lauraceous Avocadroes 



Palmaceous. 



SMALL FRUITS.^ 



f Dates 

i Cocoa Nuts 

L Sago 



Blackberry 

Rubaeeous -j Raspberry 

Dewberry 

Ribaceous { Gooseberry 

I Currants 

rBlueberries 
Vaccinaceou S ..... 1 Huc K ™s 

iBillberries 

Fragaceous Strawberries 



ACKNOWLEDGMENT 

The author is indebted to the following people who have fur- 
nished the illustrations referred to by the figures opposite their 
names : 

Page 

A. G. Turney, New Brunswick, Canada 130 

C. J. Sinsel, Boise, Idaho 1 

Experiment Station, Univ. of Me., Orono. . . 94, 95, 96, 

97, 98, 99, 100, 101 

Extension Department, Univ. of Me., Orono 55 

Harrison's Nurseries, Berlin, Md 76, 90 

Horticultural Department, Univ. of Me., Orno. . . 44, 45, 

46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 54, 58, 59, 66, 67, 70, 71 

Madison Cooper Co., Calcium, N. Y. . . . . 79, 87, 91, 92 

New England Homestead, Springfield, Mass 107 

Price Fruit Sizer Co., North Yakima, Wash 24 

Prof. J. E. Coit, Berkeley, Cal 19 

Quincy Cold Storage and Market Co., Boston, Mass. . . 80 

San Jose Chamber of Commerce, San Jose, Cal. . , 3, 23 

Shotwell & Wilmeroth Co., Wenatchee, Wash 75 

Spokane Chamber of Commerce, Spokane, Wash. 125, 129, 131 

The Cutler Fruit Grading Co., Hood River, Ore 27 

The Hinde Dauch Paper Co., Sandusky, Ohio 103 

The Remington Machine Co., Wilmington, Del 85 

Union Fibre Co., Winona, Minn 83, 86 

United Fruit Auction Co., of Detroit, Detroit, Mich. 110, 111 
Western Fruit Grading and Mfg. Co., Grand Junction, 

Col 25, 26 

W. P. Stark Nursery Co., Stark City, Mo. . . 2, 18, 105, 108 

ix 



CONTENTS 



Chapter I 

PAGE 

Fruit Harvesting Operations 1 

Picking operations — Time to pick various fruits — 
Stems on or off — Succession of pickings — Beceptacles 
used — Ladders — Disposition of the fruit — Moving the 
fruit — Managing pickers. 

Chapter II 
Preparing the Fruit for Market 22 

The packing house — For the individual — Central pack- 
ing houses — Grades of fruit — Laws of the various 
states — Assorting fruit into grades — Equipment nec- 
essary — Grading tables — Mechanical fruit graders or 



Chapter III 
Fruit Packages 40 

Packages versus bulk — Gift packages — Bequirements 
of fruit packages — Kinds of fruit packages — Standard 
sizes of packages — A'arious legal requirements — Fruit 
package material — Methods of handling — Special 
packing materials. 

Chapter IV 
Fruit Packing Operations 57 

Packing apples in barrels — Preparing the barrel — 
Facing — Filling in — Packing — Follower — Tailing- 
Heading — Nailing — Packing apples in boxes — Terms 
used — Skill required — Filling the box — Wrapping the 
fruit — Eequirements of good pack — Nailing devices — 
Eules for packing by organizations — Costs compared 
with barrel— Labeling packages. 

xi 



xii CONTENTS 

Chapter V 

PAGE 

Fruit Storage 85 

Objects of storage— Requirements of fruit for storage 
— Kinds of fruit storages — Cellars — Dugouts — Local — 
Public — Control of temperature — Construction — Insu- 
lating materials — Methods of insulation — Mechanics 
of cold storage — (Ice — Brine) system — Solutions used 
— Ammonia system — Compressor — Condensor — Expan- 
sion coils — Utilizing the cold — Brine system — Direct 
expansion — Ventilating storage houses — Humidity in 
storage houses — Cost of storing fruit — Advantages 
and disadvantages of public storages. 



Chapter VI 
The Effects of Storage on Fruit 119 

Conditions affecting keeping qualities — The effects of 
freezing on fruits — Fruit scald — Shrinkage in storage 
— Decay in storage — Storage effecting chemical 
changes. 



Chapter VII 
Transportation . . * 134 

Freight cars — Common — Ventilated — Heated — Refrig- 
erator — Express companies — Express rates versus 
freight rates — Private car lines — Parcel post — Pre- 
cooling fruit — Shipping — Fast freight — Icing stations 
— Ocean freight — Loading cars — Capacity of cars. 



Chapter VIII 
Fruit Markets 152 

Where the markets are — Selling at home — Selling in 
city markets — Foreign Markets — The markets con- 
trasted — Factors influencing the markets — Supply — 
Demand — Price. 



CONTENTS xiii 

Chapter IX 

PAGE 

Selling Agencies . . . . 167 

Commission houses — Methods of doing business — Ad- 
vantages and disadvantages — Desirability Of commis- 
sion houses — National league of commission mer- 
chants — Cooperative selling — Cooperation defined — 
Profit sharing — Non-profit sharing — Organizing ex- 
changes — Local — District — Central — Management of 
exchanges — Incorporating — Officers — Directors — 
Powers of exchanges — Collecting information — Dis- 
tributing information — Aiding growers — Sub-depart- 
ments of exchanges — Statistical — Legal — Field Or- 
ganizations — Advertising — Selling — Purchasing de- 
tails of exchange management — Benefits of coopera- 
tion. 



Chapter X 
Selling Methods 203 

Special salesmen — Track sales — F.O.B. sales — Con- 
signment — Shipments with sight draft and bill of 
lading attached — Auctions — Special retail or private 
markets — Other agencies. 

Chapter XI 
Special Fruit Organizations . . 223 

Fruit distributors — Fruit jobbers — National league of 
commission merchants — International apple shippers' 
association — Apple advertisers of America — Govern- 
ment reports and statistics. 

Chapter XII 
Fruit Shows 252 

Objects — How held or managed — Exhibits — Premium 
list — Securing premiums — Selecting fruit for exhibi- 
tion — Arranging exhibits — Advertising — Side issues — 
Feature exhibits — Judging the fruit — Score card — - 
Rules in judging. 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 

Figure Page 

1 Picking Apples in a Large Orchard . .Frontispiece 

2 Harvesting Peaches in Georgia 3 

3 A "Drying Floor" for Prunes, Santa Clara Valley, 

Cal.. 6 

4 "Knocking Almonds," Sacramento Valley, Cal. . . 7 

5 Fruit Picking Receptacles ID 

6 A Fruit Picking Bag 11 

7 Desirable Fruit Picking Ladders 12 

8 A Convertible Step-Ladder 13 

9 A Home-Made Picking Ladder for Low-Headed 

Trees 14 

10 Type of Picking Ladder Used in the Northwestern 

States 15 

11 Field Fruit Box or "Lug Box" 16 

12 Convenient Wagon for Moving the Fruit from the 

Orchard .. 16 

13 A "Three Decker" Fruit Wagon for Long Hauls. . 17 

14 A Combined Orchard and Delivery Wagon for 

Small Orchards 19 

15 A Band of Apple Pickers in Maine 20 

16 A Packing-House and Storage Cellar 23 

17 Floor Plan of Packing Room 24 

18 Delivering Peaches to a Private Packing-House in 

Georgia 25 

19 Central Packing-Houses for Oranges in Southern 

California 26 

20 A Corner in a Packing-House 27 

21 Packing and Grading Table 32 

22 Sizing Board for Fruit Grading 33 

23 Grading Fruit in a Western Cannery . , , , , , 34 

xv 



xvi LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 

Figure Page 

24 A Mechanical Fruit Grader that Weighs the Fruit 35 

25 A Mechanical Grader Having a Moveable Webb . . 36 

26 Grading Fruit 37 

27 Machine for Grading Fruit 38 

28 Gift Fruit Packages 41 

29 Standard Orange Box and Pineapple Crate . . . . 43 

30 Grape Baskets, 20 Pound and 8 Pound Sizes. ... 44 

31 Fruit Basket Containers 45 

32 Types of Fruit Packages Made from Veneer. ... 48 

33 A Form for Setting Up Apple Boxes 49 

34 Making Apple Boxes . . 49 

35 Standard Apple Box Construction 50 

36 Tools for Barrel Making 51 

37 Set of Truss Hoops Used in Barrel Making . . . . 51 

38 Form Used in Setting Up a Barrel 52 

39 Windlass and Rope Used in Barrel Making . . . . 53 

40 Measuring for Size of Hoop 54 

41 Vise with Foot-Lever Used in Nailing Hoops . . 54 

42 Placing the Quarter Hoop on the Barrel . . . . 55 

43 Heading the Barrel 55 

44 Nailing in the Head of the Barrel Before Packing 58 

45 Nailing the Quarter Hoops 58 

46 A Well-Faced Barrel of Fruit 59 

47 Tools for Barrel Packing 60 

48 A Slack Barrel from Insufficient Racking . . . . 61 

49 A Properly Tailed Barrel of Apples and Careless 

Work 62 

50 Two Types of Barrel Presses 63 

51 A Lever Barrel Press 64 

52 Packing Table with Boxes in Position 65 

53 Correct Folds in Box Liners 66 

54 Incorrect Folds in Box Liners 66 

54a Box Pack Showing the Use of Layer Boards . . . . 67 

55 School for Instructing Fruit Packers 67 

56 Style of Fruit Packs 68 

57 "Tier" and "Layer" as Used in Box Packing . . . . 69 

58 Offset Pack and Diagonal Pack 69 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS xv ii 

Figure Page 

59 End Packs- as Used with Apples 71 

60 Side Packs as Used in the West 72 

61 Wrapping the Apple, First Position 73 

62 Wrapping the Apple, Second Position 73 

63 Wrapping the Apple, Third Position . . .... 73 

64 Wrapping the Apple, Fourth Position 73 

65 Wrapping the Apple, Process Completed . . . . 74 

66 Box Not Properly Wrapped 74 

67 Bulge on Boxed Fruit 75 

68 Closed Boxes Showing Bulge 75 

69 Boxed Fruit Showing Good Alignment 76 

70 Box Showing Bad Alignment 76 

71 A Home-Made Box Nailing Press 77 

71a Box Press Used in Canada 78 

71& Western Box Press 78 

72 Nail Stripper 79 

73 Expert Boxers at Work in a Western Packing- 

House 80 

74 Lithographed Labels for Boxes and Barrels . . . . 81 

75 A Box Labeling Machine 82 

76 Boxing Sweet Cherries in California 83 

77 A Small Farm Storage Cellar, or "Dug-Out" . . 88 

78 Hollow Building Tile for Storage Houses . . . . 89 

79 Local Cold Storage House 92 

80 A Large Public Cold Storage Building . . : . . . 93 

81 Pressed Cork for Insulating Storages 95 

82 Mineral Wool for Insulating Storages 95 

83 Fibre Felt for Insulating Storages . . 95 

84 Cork Board for Insulating Storages 96 

85 Insulation for Cold Storage Rooms 98 

86 Applying Insulating Materials 99 

87 Plan of a Small Cold Storage Plant 102 

88 A Sling or Whorl Psychrometer 112 

89 A Box of Good Fruit 119 

90 Fruit Stored in Bulk 120 

91 Fruit Stored in Open Boxes 122 

92 Barrelled Apples in Storage . . , , , , , , , , 124 



xviii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 

Figure p age 

93 A Convenient Rack for Storing Small Quantities 

of Fruit 126 

94 Apple Scab on Stored Fruit 128 

95 Brown Rot 129 

96 Bitter Rot 129 

97 Black Rot 129 

98 Soft Rot or Blue Mold 129 

99 Baldwin Spot 129 

100 Fruit Spot . . . . 129 

101 Pink Rot Following Apple Scab 130 

102 Pasteboard Packages for Skipping Fruit . . . . 138 

103 Apples by Parcel Post % . . . . 139 

104 A Special Carton ' . . . . 140 

105 Packages of Fruit Ready for the Postman . . . . 141 

106 Delivering Barreled Apples to the Railroad . . . . 142 

107 Transporting Fruit by Auto Truck 150 

108 Catering to the Home Market 153 

109 Diagram of Fruit-Handling Exchanges 179 

110 Auction Warehouse 210 

111 Sampling Fruit Before Auction Sales 211 

112 Catalogs of Auction Companies 212 

113 Fruit Auction Room, New York City 212 

113a Delivering After the Sales 214 

114 The Free City Market at Boston, Mass 215 

115 Peddling Fruit in a Tenement Section of New York 217 

116 City Fruit Stands Near Garbage Barrels . . . . 218 

117 Buying from Push-Carts, East Side, New York . . 219 

118 Sidewalk Fruit Market, New York . . 219 

119 A New York Push-Cart 220 

120 Using the Sidewalk as a Fruit Stand 221 

121 Fruit Stand Under Williamsburg Bridge, New York 221 

122 A Fruit Stand of the Better Class 222 

123 Roasting Coffee in a Jobbing House 235 

124 A Western Fruit Show 255 

125 A Carload Exhibit of Apples 260 

126 A Box and Barrel Display of Fruit 261 

127 Harvesting Scene in an Almond Orchard . . . . 262 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS xix 

Figure Page 

128 The Panama Canal Built Out of Dried Apples . . 264 

129 An Attractive Booth in a Emit Show 265 

130 A Feature Display for a Fruit Show 266 

131 An Attractive Fruit Display '267 

132 Judging Fruit, Examining the Bulge 270 

133 Examining Box Packs for Compactness 273 

134 Examining Box Packs for End-Play 274 

135 Examining Fruit for Diseases, Insects or Bruises. . 275 

136 Testing Fruit for Uniformity 276 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

CHAPTER 1 

FRUIT HARVESTING OPERATIONS 

Picking Operations. — The gathering of fruit from 
the trees is quite simple in theory yet exceedingly varied 
in practice. Each section of the country has developed 
different methods of handling the fruit, depending for 
the most part upon the demands of the market in which 
the fruit is sold. In some sections growers are exceed- 
ingly careful and use painstaking care in picking and 
preparing the fruit for market; others are indifferent 
or are poorly equipped to handle the fruit properly. 
It not infrequently happens that sections having ideal 
locations for orchards produce very poor or inferior 
fruit. Such sections are either overshadowed by some 
other industry or are lacking in men with intelligence 
and enterprise to develop them. 

Time to Pick. — The time at which the various fruits 
should be picked will depend upon several factors, such 
as: (1) The variety or kind of fruit. (2) Distance 
from market. (3) Maturity of the fruit. (4) The use 
to which it is to be put. Each variety or kind of fruit 
is at its best for only a comparatively short time. Some 
of the softer fruits, like peaches, plums, apricots or 
berries, are in their prime only four or five days, while 
apples, pears, etc., will often keep for months. The 
efforts in all cases should be to have the fruit reach the 
consumer while in its best prime condition. / 

1 



^ MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

Deciduous fruit shipped from the Pacific Coast to the 
Eastern markets consumes about 14 days in transit; 
from Texas about eight ; from Georgia or Alabama about 
four ; while in most of the New England or Atlantic states 
the fruit is picked one day. and is in the hands of the con- 
sumer the next. This gives the Eastern states an enor- 
mous market advantage for their fruit, and were it not 
for the fact that the seasonal differences allow the South- 
ern and Far Western states to ripen their fruit from 10 to 
30 days ahead of the north, they would be shut out en- 
tirely from the eastern markets. 

The long time elapsing between the picking and con- 
suming of the more perishable fruits where the long 
haul is necessary, compels much of it to be picked be- 
fore it is sufficiently mature to ripen in the best prime 
condition. Then, too, the great rush among some of the 
southern growers to get the first fruit on the market 
and thus secure the highest prices furnishes an undue 
incentive to pick half mature fruit. Such fruits as 
peaches, plums, apricots, and grapes thus picked ar- 
rive in the northern markets in poor condition. They 
are lacking in flavor, are acid, flat, and often insipid. 
Such have had much to do in creating an impression 
among the consumers in the big cities that certain sec- 
tions cannot produce fruit as high in quality or flavor 
as the Northern states. 

When to Pick. — The time to pick fruit is largely a 
matter of judgment. Much has been said and written 
upon this subject but very little of it is of practical 
value to the beginner. The maturity of the seed is often 
given as an indication of the proper time to pick, but 
this is of little value to the practical man, because the 



FRUIT HARVESTING OPERATIONS 3 

picker, who is not familiar with the fruit as a rule, will 
not be able to tell when the seeds are mature. 

Some varieties have seeds that are very dark when 
the picking time arrives, other kinds have white or 
slightly colored seeds, and to use these as a guide, one 
would need to be familiar with all of the different kinds 
of fruit. Also, in regard to the color of the fruit: it 
has often been said that red fruit should get a high 




Fig. 2.— HARVESTING PEACHES IN GEORGIA 

color before harvesting. This is true only in a general 
way, because a fruit that is highly colored in one sec- 
tion of the country may be more or less lacking in color 
in others. Take, for example, the common Baldwin; in 
the north this is a very highly colored fruit, but as you 
go south into the warmer states, it becomes almost a 
green apple. 



4 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

The only way for the beginner to be sure and get the 
fruit harvested at the right time is to experiment. It 
is of little value to rely upon the advice of neighbors 
unless one knows that they have been successful. The 
person unfamiliar with the harvesting operations can 
pick a few packages of fruit and send them to market 
and the returns that he gets will very soon indicate to 
him whether the fruit arrived in good condition. By 
keeping in touch with the selling force, be it a com- 
mission man or a special agent, he can tell to a much 
better advantage just when to pick the fruit in order 
to get it in the hands of the consumer in the best prime 
condition. 

In the Northern states, apples are usually allowed 
to hang on the trees as late in the fall as climatic con- 
ditions will warrant. Most of the growth in size and 
flavor apparently comes in the last two or three weeks 
of the growing period in the fall, and if the fruit can 
be allowed to hang on the trees, it will develop much 
in size and in quality during this time. The earlier 
varieties in the North and the other varieties in the 
South are usually picked when the market conditions 
are best to receive them. In most states, large quanti- 
ties of apples are put in storage. This is commendable 
in many respects, and will be considered more in detail 
in another place. 

Peaches, plums and apricots have to be picked every 
day or every other day, because the period in which they 
are at the best is very short. If they are allowed to 
stay on the tree too long they become soft and do not 
'<' stand up" when they reach the market. Pears are 
almost always picked before they are mature. They 



FRUIT HARVESTING OPERATIONS 5 

ripen much better in the dark in storage than they do 
on the trees. Many varieties of pears are ruined by 
being allowed to remain on the trees too long. They 
often develop a coarse grain and are full of hard, gritty 
spicules which give a consumer the impression that he 
is eating sand. Frequently "water core" appears, and 
the fruit rapidly deteriorates. When ripened in stor- 
age in the dark, these spicules or grit do not develop 
so much and the fruit keeps much longer. 

Cherries are best picked when they are about in the 
condition to be eaten. If they have to be shipped a long 
distance they are sometimes picked a little green and, 
like peaches and apricots, often reach the market in 
very poor condition. In the famous cherry belt of the 
Pacific Coast, we often find the growers going through 
their orchards and picking off a cherry here and a 
cherry there over hundreds of trees to make up a five 
or ten-pound package to ship East, and while fruit 
growers in the Eastern and Northern states are still 
shoveling snow, these first cherries arrive on the markets 
in the big cities. Some of them have sold as high as 
$100 for the first ten pounds. These are largely matters 
of advertising as such fruit is not usually in very good 
condition to eat. 

Such fruits as olives, oranges and lemons are picked at 
several different stages, according to the use to which 
they are going to be put. Lemons are almost always 
picked according to size and the stem is cut off with the 
shears. The first of the olives for pickling are care- 
fully removed by hand; after that the olives that go 
into oil are shaken from the tree and gathered from the 
ground. Such fruit as figs is allowed to drop naturally 




3 4 



< B 

O £ 

" en 
O 

« s 

Q « 

O " 



I 2 



# bn H 



FRUIT HARVESTING OPERATIONS 7 

from the trees and are then picked up and dried in the 
sun. Prunes are handled in the same way. Almonds 
and other nuts are allowed to fall naturally from the 
trees, or in some cases the almonds are knocked off from 
the trees and gathered in large canvas sheets spread 
under the trees. Grapes for shipping long distances are 
picked by hand, bunches being removed with a shears. 



)>V' 


: 

fe f f 






I 1 ! 


m 


!-: . 


... -■ • '. 






m 


'~' z , ''" 




0$h 




>jL. 


S| 


1 *"****§ Fa IBM 




, ; : ; -,, ; - • 


' 




l w#m.' 


k 'S ;' M 


■:-■)■■>', ^.'.j--,. .■■^•■^v: 


*'\ 




■^y-^'f : - 


■ : ; ,7/ '.;>/ 


ff v ; *!!. 






^^'■■rlilffl ■> 4 .- ■ ...I, L 


mu 


II ' ; \.Mr y 


>: «<,—.„.,.,;,:>.■—-;" ', : 




"* 









Fig. 4.— "KNOCKING ALMONDS," SACRAMENTO VALLEY, CAL. 



Those that are dried for raisins, or go into the wine and 
grape juice industries, are pulled off more or less roughly 
from the vines. 

Persimmons are usually allowed to hang on the trees 
until frost, because before this time they are so astrin- 
gent that they have no particular market value. In the 
Gulf states many of the persimmons dry on the trees 



8 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



and, after being thus dried, are removed by hand. 
Through it all, there is one general rule to keep in mind : 
That all first or second quality fruit should be picked 
by hand and handled with every possible care. 

Stems On or Off. — Different sections of the country 
have different ways of handling the fruit, but the cus- 
tom is generally to pick all of the more perishable fruits 
with the stems on. Every stem that is pulled out of a 
fruit breaks the skin, and this allows an entrance for 
some of the decay organisms. Some fruits separate 
naturally from the stem, while in others it is quite diffi- 
cult to remove the fruit and keep the stem with it. With 
some of the more tender fruits, such as strawberries 
and sweet cherries, the fruit is picked with the stem 
on. In order to do this the thumb and finger is placed 
each side of the stem itself, the hand not touching the 
fruit. 

This entails considerable care on the part of the picker, 
but in actual practice has always been found successful. 
In the United States, the fruits that are 'picked with the 
stems on are more or less the same in all of the different 
fruit-growing sections. The following list includes the 
more common fruits which are picked with the stems on 
or off. 

STEMS WITH REGARD TO COMMON PRACTICE 



Stems on 

A 


Stems of 


Apple 


Plum 


Orange Raspberry 


Pear 


Persimmon 


Pomelo Blackberry 


Quince 


Grape 


Peach Dewberry 


Cherry- 


Strawberry- 


Apricot Almond 


Lemon 


Currant 


Prune Walnut 


Citron 


Pig 


Olive 


Lime 







FRUIT HARVESTING OPERATIONS 9 

Care in Picking. — In removing the fruit from the 
trees too much cannot be said in regard to the care in 
handling. Much fruit is ruined by carelessness in pick- 
ing. Often fruit is dropped into receptacles, poured 
roughly into boxes or barrels, jolted over rough roads in 
wagons without springs and in many ways handled so 
carelessly that fully 50 or 75% of its market value is 
wasted. A good picker should always work with both 
hands. The fruit is grasped in the palm of the hand 
and not between the thumb and finger. Often a very 
slight pull is sufficient to remove the fruit, but in some 
of the more persistent varieties, a twist and an upward 
lift at the same time is necessary to get it off without 
pulling on the stems. Good apples or fruit of any kind 
should never be dropped or poured from one basket to 
another. Every effort is made to handle the fruit as 
carefully as possible, usually picking the fruit from one 
package to another like an egg-sorter would handle eggs. 
To the fruit grower who is familiar with the different 
methods of picking, nothing is more disgusting than to 
see a person step up to a nice peach or apple and stick 
his thumb through the skin to see if it is soft enough 
to eat. This almost invariably indicates ignorance or 
gross carelessness. 

Succession of Pickings. — In many apple sections, 
what is commonly known as a "succession of pickings' ' 
is made. By this is meant the going over of the trees 
several times, picking first the fruit which is the right 
size and the best colored and then, a few days later, 
repeating the process. This is an accepted rule among 
deciduous fruit growers of plums, peaches, etc., but is 
not generally practiced in the Northern or Eastern states 



10 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

among the apple growers. In Washington and Oregon 
this is quite often done, and it has been found by ex- 
periment that fruit that is entirely too small to be con- 
sidered as a saleable product at the first picking would 
in two weeks time be large enough to go into a first 
grade. Where the growers are carrying on very in- 
tensive orcharding the practice of successive pickings 
should be recommended. The weather conditions some- 



1 ys* 
/ 


'V 


■ 'C:::; ■;■- ■- ''—-;.;.'^' 



Fig. 5.— TYPES OF PICKING RECEPTACLES 
a — Pulp pail; b — woven splint basket; c — wide splint basket. 

times militate against doing this successfully, but many 
times it will greatly increase the quality as well as the 
quantity of the fruit harvested. 

Picking Receptacles. — For the most part, orchardists 
like best the ordinary splint basket to pick the fruit in. 
There are a number of these picking baskets on the 
market, and most of them are fairly satisfactory. One 
holding about half a bushel is the best size. The handle 
ought to be fastened on the outside so as to swing clear 



FRUIT HARVESTING OPERATIONS 



11 



of the basket. This facilitates the emptying of apples 
into a barrel. Baskets having the wide splints and a 
smooth interior are the best. (Fig. 5 c.) Those having a 
woven (Fig. 5 h.) splint work are not recommended be- 
cause of the many sharp corners on the inside. It is 
usually not practical to line 
such baskets with burlap, be- 
cause the small particles of 
bark, grit and dirt will stick 
into the burlap, and the sharp 
corners break or puncture the 
skin. A very small puncture 
will often cause decay as 
quickly as a large bruise. 

Picking Bags. — Various 
kinds of picking bags are also 
in use. These, for the most 
part, are not to be recom- 
mended, especially those that 
are all constructed of cloth or 
canvas. Some of the picking 

bags have a wooden piece around the top which will help 
protect the fruit. These are better than the other kind. 
The great objection to a picking bag is that in climbing 
over a ladder or through a tree, the fruit is often 
bruised through the bag. Small particles also collect on 
the inside of the bag the same as they do on the burlap- 
lined basket, and the sharp corners of the very fine 
particles tend to puncture the skin of the fruit. 

In some places, tin pails or wooden pails (Fig. 5 a.) 
are used. These are very satisfactory if rightly handled. 
A tin pail, as long as it is new and flexible, is a good pick- 




FRONT BACK 

Fig. 6.— A HANDY PICKING 
BAG 

Not as good as basket. 



12 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



ing receptacle. After it becomes rusty, it may best be dis- 
carded. One advantage of a tin pail is that a foreman 
or superintendent could tell for quite a distance whether 
his men were handling the fruit carefully or not by the 
amount of noise made in the pail. In many of the 




Fig. 7.— DESIRABLE FRUIT PICKING LADDERS 

a — Pointed rung ladder; b — three-legged step-ladder. 



Western states deciduous fruits, such as peaches, plums, 
etc., are picked in these pails. 

There are also to be found on the market various 
types of special picking tools. These are usually ar- 
ranged on some kind of a pole or long handle with a 
basket or cuplike affair on the end to catch the fruit 
and remove it from the tree. Sometimes there are 
little knives to cut off the stems of the fruit; occasion- 



FRUIT HARVESTING OPERATIONS 



13 



ally there are wire claws which are supposed to pull 
off the fruit. Some of them have long tube-like sacks 
made of cloth through which the fruit can roll down 
and be caught in a receptacle at the lower end. On a 
commercial basis none of these fruit-picking tools have 
ever proved successful. They are good for sampling or 
for picking specimen fruit for shows, etc.j but are alto- 
gether too slow for 
commercial work. 

Ladders. — There 
are but two kinds of 
ladders commercial- 
ly used in an orch- 
ard. One, the com- 
mon step- ladder 
(Fig. 7 b.), the other 
the long or rung- 
ladder (Fig. la.). 
The step-ladders are 
about 8 or 10 feet 
high, and have only 
three legs. The third 
leg is reinforced at 
the top by braces 
and comes to a point 

on the ground. This is necessary because of the 
general unevenness of the orchard land. The three- 
legged ladder can always maintain an even position 
while it is usually difficult to properly set a 
four-legged ladder. The rung or long ladders are made 
of light material and always small enough so that 
one man can handle them alone. It is a waste of time to 




Fig. 



-A CONVERTIBLE STEP-LADDER 



14 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



use a big ladder that two people will have to move. 
The top end or point should be drawn together so as 
to enable it to be pushed up through the limbs or the 
branches. A square top on the ladder is always catch- 
ing on the limbs and knocking off the fruit. The rungs 

are made as 
large as possible, 
because it is 
tiresome work 
for a picker to 
stand all day on 
small pins, and 
the more one 
can contribute 
to the comfort 
of the picker, 
the better work 
he will do. 

Disposition of 
the Fruit. — It 
has been cus- 
tomary among 
the growers of 
the Northern 
and Eastern states to put the apples on the ground in 
piles, protected from the soil by a little straw. These 
have been allowed to remain in the pile for several weeks, 
and frequently have been graded and packed in barrels 
direct from these piles. The argument in favor of this 
method was that the fruit which had started to decay 
would be discovered when it was regraded and could be 
thrown out, This ? however, no longer applies, because if 




Fig. 9.— A CONVENIENT HOME-MADE PICK- 
ING LADDER FOR LOW-HEADED TREES 



FRUIT HARVESTING OPERATIONS 



15 



the fruit is carefully handled, the bad or bruised ones will 
be very few and can be easily thrown out when the grad- 
ing is done. It is now customary to place all of the 
fruit, as fast as it is picked, in either barrels or boxes 
and then remove it 
immediately to stor- 
age or to the packing- 
house. 

The western people 
favor the box (Fig. 
11). If they do not 
care to take the regu- 
lar packing-box into 
the field, they provide 
what is known as the 
"lug" box holding 
about 50 pounds each. 
Fruit is put into 
these, placed on a low 
wagon (Fig. 12), and 
taken immediately 
to the packing-house. 
It is then packed di- 
rect from these boxes, 
hence no pouring, or 
little handling of the 

fruit is necessary. The Eastern fruit growers are gradu- 
ally adopting the box method, and in a few years it is 
probable that the barrels will be largely replaced by boxes. 
However, the barrel can be used to good advantage, and 
is quite a convenient receptacle in which to move the 
apples from the orchard to the packing-house. As soon 




Fig. 10.— TYPE OF PICKING LADDER 
USED IN THE NORTH WESTERN U. S. 



16 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



as the fruit is picked from the tree, it is placed in these 

boxes or barrels 
and set in the 
shade. The same 
day or night it 
is removed to 
the grading- 
house. In some 
of the warmer 
sections of the 
country, the 
fruit is hauled 
away early in 
the morning, allowing the night time for it to cool down 
as much as it will. 

Moving the Fruit. — In transferring the fruit from the 
orchard to the packing-house or storage cellar, consider- 
able attention will need to be paid to the wagon on 




Fig. 11.— FIELD FRUIT BOX, OR "LUG" BOX 

Ends, %"; sides, Y" thick; size, inside, 26 y 2 " x 

13K" x WVa". 





ssa&#«*. ."SfiW^a 


. 


- a 


V ' 

-mmn — inn 

Hi 


7 ' * 



Fig. 12.— A VERY CONVENIENT WAGON FOR MOVING THE FRUIT 
FROM THE ORCHARD 



FRUIT HARVESTING OPERATIONS 



17 



which, it is moved. In the first place, the wagon ought 
to have low wheels and a flat bed extending out over the 
wheels. The energy that is used in lifting barrels or 
boxes up into a high wagon is wasted, and besides, 
some of the fruit may be bruised in this way. If an 




Fig. 13.— A "THREE DECKER" FRUIT WAGON FOR LONG HAULS 



ordinary wagon is used, it ought to be a low-wheeled 
one with springs under the bed to keep the fruit from 
being bruised. For moving barrels one of the common 
drop-axle wagons is best. In such a wagon the bed 
runs only 18 or 20 inches from the ground and it is 
quite easy for two men to handle the barrels. On side 
hills or on very rough land where it is not feasible to 
use a wagon, some kind of a boat or sled is necessary. 
Usually such a conveyance is easily made on the farm. 
The fruit is allowed to slide down the hills to the perma- 



18 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

nent roads where it may be transferred to the fruit 
wagons. The spring wagon is not only necessary for 
orchard work, but also for carrying the fruit from the 
packing-house to the railway or shipping points. 

Managing Pickers. — When one begins to offer sug- 
gestions upon the management of help on a fruit farm 
he is immediately piling upon himself criticisms from 
various sources, because the labor question in connec- 
tion with fruit growing is becoming one of the most 
serious problems connected with the business. In sec- 
tions of the country where large areas are devoted to 
fruit, it is often exceedingly difficult to get competent 
help for harvesting or handling the fruit. Often, in 
small areas more or less isolated from the larger centers 
of population, growers have to abandon their fruit be- 
cause of the cost of labor or the lack of sufficient help. 

Tramp Labor. — In the larger fruit sections of the 
Western and Middle states, most of the day labor con- 
sists of the great floating population which is popularly 
known as "tramps or hobos." Such labor, although not 
the best, is usually the class that has to be relied upon 
in harvesting fruit crops. These floating laborers will 
winter either in the South or in the big cities of the 
East. In the spring they drift South and begin pick- 
ing fruit at the opening of the season in the Southern 
states and then gradually work north until the season 
closes and they find themselves in the North as far as 
the fruit industry extends ; drifting back to the South or 
to the big cities to spend the winter. Much of this help 
is unreliable and uncertain, and each fruit-producing sec- 
tion has to work out the problem of harvesting its fruit 
according to the needs of its own particular locality. 



FRUIT HARVESTING OPERATIONS 19 

Day Labor. — Unless an owner has help that he knows 
to be reliable, it is not good policy to hire by the month 
or by the box. The best results are obtained from day 
labor. In such cases the workmen know they get so 
much pay for so many hours work, and are not inclined 
to hurry or to bruise or spoil the fruit. Occasionally, 
some growers like to have the fruit picked by the tree 
or on a contract job for the whole orchard. This very 




Fig. 14.— A COMBINED ORCHARD AND DELIVERY WAGON FOR 
SMALL ORCHARD 



often does not prove to the best interest of the producer. 
Much of the fruit is spoiled, some of it is skipped and 
left on the trees, while limbs are split down and the 
trees generally despoiled. 

Small Fruits by Quart. — Small fruits are most always 
picked by the quart because there is always a foreman or 
superintendent to inspect each quart as they come in, 
and in case the workman is not picking properly he can 
be dealt with at the time. 

Prices Paid. — For small fruits the price varies per 
quart in the different states and, in some cases, different 
sections of the same state. In New Jersey, for straw- 



20 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



berries it is customary to pay iy 2 cents a quart; in 
Michigan, about the same ; while in New England states, 
2 cents is often paid. In the case of the raspberry or 
blackberry, often as high as 3 or 4 cents a quart is paid. 
Keeping Records. — Where berries or fruit are picked 
by the quart it is necessary to have some system of 
keeping records. This is usually done by means of 




Fig. 15.— A BAND OF APPLE PICKERS IN MAINE 



tickets. Small pasteboard tickets, on which are printed 
the various number of quarts, are handed out to the 
pickers as they bring in their carriers of berries. Some 
of the tickets have several numbers marked around the 
border and a place in the center to write the picker's 
name, and as the berries are brought in, the super- 
intendent or foreman punches out the number corre- 
sponding with the number of quarts brought. 

This method has not always proved satisfactory be- 



FRUIT HARVESTING OPERATIONS 21 

cause of the ease in which mistakes occur or in which 
the picker might imitate the punch marks. Where the 
smaller quart tickets are used there ought to be some 
mark on them to prevent them being duplicated. This 
can be done by having engraved on them the signature 
of the owner. 



CHAPTER II 

PREPARING THE FRUITS FOR MARKET 

The Packing-House. — Almost all fruits are arranged 
for market in some kind of a packing-house, and this is 
usually necessary. Fruit ought not to be exposed to 
the sun during the day and, in the Northern states, 
where apples are harvested late, they must be protected 
at night from extreme and varying temperatures. This 
may best be done in a specially designed packing-house. 

For small fruits in the Northern states, and for some 
of the tree-fruits in the South, the only packing-house 
that is necessary is four posts set up in the orchard, 
with a wood or canvas roof to keep out the sun and give 
a comfortable place for the workmen to grade and pack 
the fruit. The old practice of packing fruit, especially 
apples, in dark cellars under dwellings, is decidedly 
unpractical. In the first place, they are always dark 
and usually damp and uncomfortable places for the 
men to work; besides large quantities of fruit stored 
under a residence is not good for the health of the 
family living above. 

Where more than 30 or 40 barrels of fruit are to be 
harvested and stored, some kind of a special cellar and. 
packing-house is provided. In large orchards these 
may be erected in the orchard itself. In other places 
it is put up near the other buildings of the farm, mak- 
ing it convenient to the residence and so far as possible 



PREPARING THE FRUITS FOR MARKET 



23 



easy to get the fruit to and from the house. A small 
building 20 x 24 feet is large enough to accommodate 
200 to 250 barrels of fruit. This may be constructed 
in two stories; a basement below, well insulated for 
protection from winter colds, and a story above for the 
grading and packing of the fruit. If an attic can be 










Fig. 16.— PACKING-HOUSE AND STORAGE CELLAR 
1,000 bbls. capacity. 30 x 40 ft. 



/ 



added, this will greatly facilitate the storing of empty 
packages, fruit boxes, etc., during the summer. Such a 
building is of the nature of a permanent improvement 
to the place, and while not costing a great amount it is 
a decided advantage. Besides being used for apples or 
other fruit, it may in other ways be used to good ad- 
vantage during the summer. Such a building may be 
arranged in different ways to suit the convenience of 



24 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



the particular locality, or increased in size to accom- 
modate much larger quantities of fruit. 

Central Packing-Houses. — Many places in the United 
States where the fruit areas are large, growers do not 




Fig. 17.— PLAN OF PACKING ROOM 

30 ft. x 40 ft. 



pack their own fruit. This is especially true where co- 
operative organizations are in vogue. It has been found 
by experience that the average grower cannot pack his 
own fruit and maintain a uniform package from year 
to year. Each grower has a little different standard 
as his own. Hence, some of the cooperative organiza- 



PREPARING THE FRUITS FOR MARKET 



25 



tions have designed a simple warehouse or packing-house 
to which all the fruit is brought. There it is packed by 
experts. This insures a much greater degree of uni- 
formity and enables the cooperative organizations to 
guarantee a standard grade or pack. 

Many of the Western fruit organizations have these 
central packing-houses and it is from the success of 




Fig. 18.— DELIVERING PEACHES TO A PRIVATE PACKING- 
HOUSE IN GEORGIA 

these that their *use has spread to many of the Eastern 
states. It is quite probable, however, that this method 
is better suited to the Central and "Western states than 
to the far East, because the areas adapted to fruit grow- 
ing in the East are usually so scattered that a central 
packing-house would not draw enough fruit to make 
it pay. A large packing plant of this kind costs 
several hundred dollars, and to be a paying proposition, 
large quantities of fruit must be handled. 

Dividing into Grades. — Before attempting to explain 
the way fruit is graded, it is necessary to give a clear 



26 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



idea of what makes up a grade. The grades of fruit 
might be denned as a division into classes, according to 
a certain custom or law. In the past there never has 
been any very definite conception of just what a standard 
grade should be. This led to a great multiplicity of 
marks to represent grades. In fact, they have appeared 
on the market in such numbers that they scarcely mean 




Fig. 19. — CENTRAL PACKING-HOUSES FOR ORANGES IN A 
SMALL SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA TOWN 



anything to the consuming public. "What would mean 
a fancy grade under one mark in one section of the 
country, might be a very poor grade when coming from 
another section. Only last year on the Liverpool market 
in England, 35 different brands representing supposedly 
standard grades, were found on packages imported from 
the United States and Canada. Under such conditions, 
it has been necessary for the buyer to open the package 
and examine the fruit personally. 
For the past 10 or 15 years certain progressive fruit 



PREPARING THE FRUITS FOR MARKET 



27 



growers have attempted to establish standard grades for 
the different kinds of apples, that would be recognized 
on the general market. Still further they have at- 
tempted to guarantee these brands or grades and if not 
found up to standard, as per guarantee, the purchas- 
ing price would be returned to the buyer. A cooperative 




Fig. 20.— CORNER IN A PACKING-HOUSE 
Showing table on which grading and sorting is done. 



organization in the West led in the establishing of uni- 
form grades. It worked out a set of rules denning the 
grades and gave instructions to growers or packers ex- 
plaining the way to handle fruit in order to conform 
with these standard grades. 

This plan worked so well on a limited scale that other 
organizations took the matter up, and recently a number 
of states have enacted laws covering or defining- stan- 



28 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

dard grades. Such laws in the East have been hard 
to enact because the growers or producers of fruit have 
not been in the habit of taking very great pains with 
their fruit or their orchards. A great quantity of poor 
fruit has been offered for sale for whatever it would 
bring, and little effort has been put forth to improve the 
quality. Under such conditions, the farmers have op- 
posed the enacting of such a law. Even the govern- 
ment has hesitated in making a law that would affect 
the fruit industry as a whole. Their argument has been 
that conditions differ so greatly in different states that 
no law which would affect all alike could be made. How- 
ever, a federal law was passed establishing a standard 
barrel and describing how such fruit shall be marked or 
the package labeled. Up until 1914 this law was not 
enforced because there was no penalty for its disobey- 
ance and the public was not compelled to use it. It 
is interesting to note that while the Western states have 
been the leaders in establishing these standard grades, 
they have been the last to enact laws compelling their use. 
The following are some of the names that apply to 
the different grades of apples as enacted into law by a 
number of the Eastern states. 

MAINE LAW: 

Fancy Apples 2y 2 " up 

No. 1 or Class 1 2%" to 2y 2 " 

No. 2 or Class 2 2 "to 2%" 

Unclassified No size 

NEW YORK STATE LAW: 
Fancy Grade 
Standard "A" grade. 
Standard "B" grade, No sizes, 
Unclassified, 



PREPARING THE FRUITS FOR MARKET 29 

U. S. APPLE LAW: 
Standard grade, minimum size, 2y 2 ". 
Standard grade, minimum size, 214". 
Standard grade, minimum size, 2 ". 

CANADIAN LAW: 

No. 1 or XXX. No sizes specified. 
No. 2 or XX. No sizes specified. 
No. 3 or X. No sizes specified. 
Culls. 

It will be noted in studying over the requirements of 
these laws that, in general, the classes or grades are very 
nearly the same in the different states as well as in 
Canada. In regard to the descriptions of these grades, 
the laws also appear very similar. For instance, in the 
Maine law, we find the following: "Fancy apples shall 
consist of apples of one variety, above the average size 
and color for the variety and none smaller than 2y 2 
inches in diameter, sound and free from worm holes, 
bruises, scab or any other defect that materially injures 
the appearance or useful quality of the apples, and 
shall be properly packed in strong, clean packages." 

The laws of the New York State specify a fancy 
grade as follows : "It shall consist of apples of one 
variety which are well-grown specimens, which are prop- 
erly packed, of good color for the variety, normal shape, 
free from dirt, disease, insects and fungus injury, 
bruises and other defects except such as are necessarily 
caused in the operation of packing." 

The United States law says : ' ' Fancies shall be of one 
variety which are well-grown specimens, hand-picked, 
of good color for the variety, normal shape, practically 
free from insects and fungus injuries, bruises and other 
defects except such as are necessarily caused in the 



30 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

operation of packing; or apples of one variety which 
are not more than 10% below the foregoing specifica- 
tions, shall be standard grade, minimum size, 2U 2 inches, 
if the minimum size of the apple is 2\/ 2 inches in trans- 
verse diameter." 

The Canadian Law says: "Fruit shall not be marked 
a fancy quality unless fruit consists of well-grown speci- 
mens of one variety, sound, uniform, and of at least 
normal size and of good color for the variety, of normal 
shape, free from worm holes, bruises, scabs and any 
other defect, and properly packed." 

In the State of Oregon, where the most of our stan- 
dard apple packs originated, we find in the regulations 
of one cooperative organization the following for fancy 
apples: "All apples must be clean, fully matured, of 
good color, free from any insect, fungus, rust, decay or 
injury except where specified. Deformed apples will not 
be accepted." Another western fruit distributing or- 
ganization describes its Extra Fancy as follows: "The 
grade shall consist of sound, smooth, matured, clean, 
hand-packed, well-formed apples only ; free from insects, 
diseases, blemishes, bruises, and other physical injuries, 
scald, scab, scale, sun scald, dry or bitter rot, worm, worm 
stings, worm holes, spray burns, limb rub, visible water 
core, skin punctures or skin broken at stem. All apples 
must be of good matured color, shape, and condition, 
characteristic of the variety. ' ' This organization handles 
the fruit of 42 local exchanges comprising over 7,000 
growers. 

In commenting upon these various grades as estab- 
lished by law, several points are noted. First: The 
regulations all refer to only closed packages, which 



PREPARING THE FRUITS FOR MARKET 31 

means packages sealed up so that the buyer cannot easily 
examine the contents. All packages not sealed would 
not need to conform in any way to these laws. Second : 
The State of Maine has the only law specifying sizes 
of apples according to the different grades. The other 
states specify that the minimum size shall be marked 
on the package and this minimum size shall not have 
less than 95% of the apples equal to or above the size 
mentioned. Third: That the United States law does 
not refer to anything except standard barrels. Apples 
packed in boxes or other packages need not conform to 
the United States law. 

The grade of apples known as the unclassified, ac- 
cording to the New York and Maine laws, is hardly 
explainable because of its doubtful use. The only in- 
stances where it seems to be of value is in case the 
grower does not wish to pack according to any of the 
other standard grades. In enacting such a law, there- 
was considerable opposition among the fruit growers and 
apparently the unclassified was put on to gratify such 
growers who did not care to pack or grade their fruit ; 
because any size or any variety or mixtures thereof may 
be included in this unclassified grade, and all that is 
necessary to comply with the law will be to mark the 
packages ' ' unclassified. ' ' 

It is quite possible that these laws will be changed in 
the near future to conform more closely with the stan- 
dard that the Western organizations have set. There ap- 
parently is no question among the more advanced 
growers and handlers of fruit that standard grades and 
packages are necessary, and they predict that in a few 
years there will be scarcely any demand for apples that 



32 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



do not conform to some of these standard grades. The 
consuming public has reached the point where it does 
not care to spend money upon uncertainties. The cost 
of living is so high that what it now buys ought to be 
guaranteed, so that if not conforming to the standard, 
consumers will be able to get their money back. Most 
consumers do not object to paying high prices for goods 
that are perfect or up to the standard grade, but they 

do object to being 
buncoed by buying 
fruit or farm pro- 
duce that is not in 
any way reliable. 

Sorting the 
Fruit. — H a v i n g 
determined what 
the standard grade 
shall be, the next 
step is to arrange 
the packing-house 
so as to best per- 
form the operation of grading the fruit. In most of 
the packing-houses in the Eastern states what is known 
as a grading table is used. This is a table of the 
right height to suit the convenience of the individ- 
ual doing the grading (Fig. 21). It is about 8 
feet long and 4 feet wide and is covered on the top with 
heavy burlap. The apples are emptied upon this table 
and then picked into either boxes or baskets, depending 
upon whether the fruit is packed in barrels or standard 
apple boxes. This packing or grading table is arranged 
so as to have the best light possible. The room in 




Fig. 21. — Packing or grading table, 4' x 



PREPARING THE FRUITS FOR MARKET 33 

which, the work is done is comfortable and clean. It 
should have a temperature of about 60 to 65 degrees. 
This is ample to enable the workers to be comfortable 
and at the same time will not materially hasten the rip- 
ening processes of the fruit. 

Such a place may well be equipped with electric lights^ 
so that when grading is done in the late evenings or 
on cloudy days there will be no chance for error be- 
cause of inability to see blemishes or bruises. It has 
been determined by experience that the workmen will 
do much better work where all things are convenient 
and the room comfortable, than they will in close or 




Fig. 22.— SIZING BOARD, 18" x 4" x Y%". 

cramped quarters. It is not possible to do good grad- 
ing or packing in dark, gloomy cellars or in open sheds 
or buildings where the environment is such as to make 
conditions uncomfortable. 

The beginner will usually need some kind of a me- 
chanical device for determining the sizes of the apples. 
A small board with holes, ranging from 2 to 3 inches 
in diameter, is often used. (Fig. 22). This is kept handy 
so the person grading can occasionally try an apple and 
thus familiarize himself with the different sizes. After a 
few hours work with this board, it can then be largely 
dispensed with. "Where pains are taken, in picking the 
fruit from the trees, to dispose of badly deformed or 



34 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

wormy specimens, all that is necessary in the grading 
house is to separate according to the requirements of 
fancies first and second grades. When a sorter becomes 
sufficiently expert at this work, he can grade and pack 
at the same time in either boxes or barrels, thus reduc- 
ing the amount of handling necessary. 

Mechanical Fruit Graders. — During the past five or 
six years, a number of mechanical fruit graders have 
appeared on the market. Most of these are designed for 











^' * \c,' 






t.- *.• ' 


,V"„' -•:•:.. 










<;" 




2. iir" 








N&jpQmS .^-■~~ 



Fig. 23.— GRADING FRUIT IN A WESTERN CANNERY 

Peaches, plums, apricots, need to be carefully graded for size and 

ripeness before canning. 

use in grading apples. However, some of them are also 
supposed to do good work on other fruits. The citrus 
growers of both California and Florida have used me- 
chanical graders for 10 or 15 years, and have found 
them a very great help in cutting down the expense of 
the operation. They, however, do a large business, often 
sending out as high as 1,000 cars of fruit from a single 
packing-house. 



PREPARING THE FRUITS FOR MARKET 35 

All fruit that has to be wrapped and packed in boxes 
needs to be graded much more carefully than fruit that 
is shipped loose in packages; as, for example, apples 
shipped in barrels. Most of the mechanical graders for 
apples have appeared in the Central or "Western states, 
but within the past three or four years, some of them 
have been tried out in the East. Many are still in the 
experimental stage and while they are being used more 
and more every year, it is still a question whether they 




Fig. 24.— A GRADING MACHINE 
This machine weighs and tosses the fruit to separate compartments. 

are just the best thing to use. I am of the opinion, how- 
ever, that in a few years more they will be perfected 
to such an extent that all large growers of apples will 
use them. 

Irregular shaped fruit, like pears, or soft fruit, like 
peaches and plums, are seldom graded by mechanical 
means and it is not probable that such devices will ever 
be made successful. Fruit like strawberries or cherries 
which have long stems, do not lend themselves to me- 
chanical appliances, hence they will probably always 
have to be graded by hand. 



36 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

Most of the mechanical graders work on practically 
the same principle. They have a series of cups or open- 
ings into which the apples are fed from the hopper. 
As these cups advance they gradually increase in size 
until the apple contained in them falls through. The 
cups are the smallest at the intake. As the fruit ad- 
vances, it falls through at different places, and is caught 
in receptacles or compartments according to the sizes 




Fig. 25.— A MECHANICAL GRADER HAVING A MOVEABLE WEB 

desired for packing. From these compartments it is 
packed into boxes or barrels as the case may be. There 
are several different types on the market, but these cups 
constitute the main principle. Some of them have long 
webs, and the cups pass around these webs like a belt. 
Others work in horizontal circles and still others are on 
a vertical wheel resembling somewhat the principle of 
the old-fashioned water-wheel. 

In Figure 26 is shown a method of grading. The 
sizing is accomplished by 28 wooden nights mounted on 



38 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



endless belts which move from the hopper over the entire 
length of the machine. Each flight consists of a board 
having four large, ronnd holes drilled in it at equal in- 
tervals, beneath which is another board similar to the top 
board, except that part of the wood is cut away, forming 
a V notch, (which does not show in the illustration). 
This lower board acts as a " gate ' ' to the openings in the 




Fig. 27.— APPARATUS FOR GRADING FRUIT 



upper board, except when the edges of the holes coincide.^ 
The "gate," board slides longitudinally with the top 
board and by sliding it various distances the openings 
may be increased at will. At intervals along the length 
of the machine are adjustable gauges, which regulate the 
size of the opening of each flight as it passes. The small- 
est fruit is dropped first and so on until the largest is 
deposited. Sizes from 1% to 3% and larger. 



PREPARING THE FRUITS FOR MARKET 39 

The rapidity with which they work depends upon the 
size and the nnmber of cups. The smaller machines, 
operated by one man, grade from 25 to 50 barrels a 
day. The larger machines run as high as 500 to 800 
barrels a day, requiring three men to operate them. Most 
of them have a power attachment, necessitating a small 
motor or gasoline engine to run them. One and a half 
horsepower is sufficient for most of them. The cost of 
the machines ranges from $50 for the small ones, to 
$275 for the larger ones, not including the power to 
operate them. So far as experience has gone, the great 
objection to the graders is that they do not sort out the 
bad or deformed specimens. This means that at the 
feeding hopper someone must pick out the bad fruit, 
or culls, as they are fed through, or the fruit must later be 
graded from the compartments. 

One particular brand of machine has a revolving brush 
in the hopper which is supposed to clean off any dust 
or dirt that may be on the fruit. This is always done 
with citrus fruit but is usually not required in grad- 
ing apples. On the whole, mechanical graders are 
worthy of considerable study, and probably in the near 
future will be so perfected as to become a standard part 
of the equipment of large commercial orchards. 



CHAPTER III 

FRUIT PACKAGES 

Packages versus Bulk. — The old system of selling 
fruit in bulk is no longer permissible. In some few 
instances it is still done, but in most fruit-growing sec- 
tions it is prohibited by either custom or law. Not 
many years ago when the farmer went to the grocery 
store to buy his sugar or flour, it was dished out to him 
from a barrel which was always standing more or less 
open and not infrequently became a general collector 
of dust and dirt for a long time. This is no longer 
practiced and, indeed, ought not to be. Everything now 
is put up in small packages which are sold as a part 
of the contents. Occasionally, you will see dried apples, 
prunes, raisins, etc., on the market, sold in bulk, but 
for the most part this is dispensed with, and probably 
in a few more years none can be had, at least at retail, 
except in closed packages. 

Gift Packages. — The tendency of the time is to use 
gift packages. These must be considered as a part of 
the cost of marketing the fruit and charges or calcula- 
tions made to cover this cost. In some instances where 
growers cater to a private trade, the packages are col- 
lected and used over again, but where shipments are 
made the packages go with the fruit. 

Requirements of Fruit Packages. — There are several 
considerations to be made in the selecting of a fruit 

40 



FRUIT PACKAGES 



41 



package. Custom has established some packages as 
standard, and laws have established others, but most 
of them ought to conform to some well-recognized stan- 
dard. First, they must be cheap because, being a gift 
package, it is not good judgment to spend too much 
money upon the container of the fruit. Second, they 
must be light because freight rates are high on most of 
these packages and any unnecessary weight will only 




Fig. 28.— GIFT PACKAGES 

a — 14-quart peach basket, round covers; b — same, t muslin covers; c — 

1-bushel hamper, plain; d — 1-bushel hamper, braced; e — 1-bushel 

peach basket; / — Yz -bushel peach basket. 

add to the cost of shipping or handling. Third, they 
must be convenient not only from the packer's stand- 
point but from the shipper's and consumer's standpoint 
as well. They ought to be easy to load on wagons or on 
freight cars; they ought to be easy to handle on the 
retail market and also convenient for a purchaser to 
carry home or use in the home after once received. 
Some of the more perishable fruits are carried home by 
the consumer and placed immediately into refrigerators. 



42 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

Hence, ungainly or unsightly packages could not be 
used. 

All of these points must be considered and every pos- 
sible step made to improve the convenience. Fourth, 
packages must be durable. While they are made as 
light as possible, they should not be so frail that many 
of them reach their destination in a smashed or broken 
condition. This ruins the fruit and, of course, reduces 
the sale price of the product. Fifth, and last, the 
packages must be sanitary. This is of growing impor- 
tance at the present time and is justly so considered. 
As the amount of fruit consumed in large cities grows 
greater each year, more consideration must be given to 
have this reach the buyer in a sanitary condition. 

The ideal package then, is clean, and neither old nor 
soiled in any way, is not ornamented or decorated with 
colored cloth or paints that might poison the fruit, and 
every possible precaution is taken to get wholesome 
fruit to the consumer. Much can be said in regard to 
the handling of fruit and vegetables in the large cities. 
Hucksters, push ; carts, fruit stands and delivery wagons 
are frequently not of the best sanitary type and the 
consumer needs to be warned or the condition alleviated 
by legislation. 

The Kinds of Packages. — The size and kinds of 
packages vary greatly in different sections of the country 
and so far little effort has been made toward standard- 
izing the sizes of packs in the different states and in 
many cases, different parts of the same state. Apples 
are usually shipped in barrels or boxes. Barrels are 
the oldest, have been used the longest, and are most used 
in the Eastern states. Barrels have been discarded in 



FRUIT PACKAGES 



43 



the Western .states, and now practically no apples are 
shipped in barrels from west of the Mississippi. Boxes 
have been found to be more convenient for the western 
trade, and are cheaper and easier to handle. It is pre- 
dicted that in a few years barrels will be displaced 
altogether by the standard apple box. All the citrus 
fruit from both the South and West is shipped in boxes. 
Pears and quinces are shipped in both boxes and bar- 




Fig. 29. 

o — Standard orange box, 12 x 12 x 27 ins.; b — Pineapple crate, 
12 x 1054 x 36 ins. 



rels, depending upon whether grown in the East or 
West, the West using, for the most part, the standard 
box. 

For the more perishable fruits like peaches, plums, 
apricots, etc., baskets of some kind are used. These 
baskets are of widely varied types. Most of them, how- 
ever, are splint baskets made of hard wood, and the 
smaller ones are crated in some kind of a box container 
for ease in transportation. The Western people prefer 
the small two- or four-quart baskets shipped in box con- 
tainers. Many of the Central and Eastern states ship 
direct to market in baskets of one-sixth, one-half or 
one bushel measure. Small fruit, with the exception 
of cranberries, is almost invariably shipped in quart or 



44 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



pint boxes. These boxes are various in type and make, 
and are shipped in various sized containers. The con- 
tainers range from 8, 16, 24, 32 to even 64-quart sizes. 
Cranberries being a very hard fruit, are almost always 
shipped in boxes or barrels. Grapes, for the most part, 
are packed in small splint baskets or individual baskets. 
Those used in the West carry six pounds net and are 
crated in four box carriers. The individual baskets 
from the Central or Eastern states are quite popular 




Fig. 30. 
a — 20-pound grape basket; b — 8-pound grape basket. 



and make a neat package for the consumer to 
carry home. For the larger grape industries in wine- 
making or grape juice factories, they are usually shipped 
by the carload either in 32-quart hampers or in 50- 
pound lug boxes. These hampers or boxes are usually 
returned to the grower for use over again. 

Standard Sizes for Fruit Packages. — Most of the 
states have adopted standards in weights and measures 
for the various kinds of fruits, but only two or three 
have passed laws regulating the size of the packages 
for fruits such as apples, pears, peaches, etc. Most of 
the present fruit packages are the result of various tests 



FRUIT PACKAGES 



45 



and trials from different shipping localities. Those that 
have been found efficient on the general market, have 
survived, while those that have not, disappeared. 

Out of these almost innumerable kinds and types of 
packages have come two or three which are now recog- 
nised in most states as standard. Especially is this 
true for the larger fruits such as the apple and the 




Fig. 31.— BASKET CONTAINERS 

a — Standard square quart berry basket; b — Standard square pint berry 

basket; c — Standard oblong pint berry basket; d— Paper boxes; e — 6-pound 
peach baskets. 

pear. Regarding apple packages, the Western states 
have taken the lead in the adoption of a standard box, 
but, up to date, have not enacted laws to enforce their 
use. The different fruit-growing organizations have 
largely adopted these standardized packs and no regu- 
lative law from the state has been necessary to enforce 
their use. The United States has recently passed a law 



46 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

defining what a standard apple barrel shall be, but they 
have not gone far enough to include in their law a 
standard apple box. Laws and customs of the various 
states so far as standard packages for apples are con- 
cerned, are very similar. These laws are summarized 
for the information of the reader. 

Kegarding the standard sizes of apple barrels, the 
Maine law requires the length of staves to be 28% 
inches, the diameter head 17% inches, the distance be- 
tween heads 26 inches, the circumference at bulge 64 
inches, and the capacity 7,000 cubic inches. The New 
York law is the same. By the Missouri law the length 
of the staves is 28% inches, the diameter head 17 1 / 4 
inches, the center diameter 20% inches, and the chines 
% inches. The Canada law states that the distance be- 
tween heads shall be 26% inches, the diameter head 17 
inches, the inside diameter 18% inches, and the capacity 
96 quarts. The United States law is the same as the 
Maine law. 

By the Maine law apple boxes shall be 10% x 11% x 
18 inches inside measurement, and have a capacity of 
2,350 cubic inches. The New York law is the same. 
Canada requires the boxes to be 10 x 11 x 20 inches in- 
side measurement, while the Pacific Coast associations 
have 10% x 11 % x 18 inches inside measurement as a 
standard, and 10 x 11 x 20 inches as a special size. 

It will be noted from the foregoing figures that Mis- 
souri is the only state that has a law on standard apple 
barrels which differs in any particular from the United 
States law. This was originally made to conform to the 
dimensions of the common flour barrel and does not 
differ sufficiently in any of its dimensions but what its, 



FRUIT PACKAGES 47 

use is permissible in Maine or in New York. In fact, 
it is quite common to see apples shipped in either of 
these states in flour barrels. 

The laws of the state of Maine read : ' ' The standard 
apple barrel shall contain 7,000 cubic inches, provided, 
however, that the dimensions as given above shall consti- 
tute a legal barrel. " It so happens that this legal barrel 
does not usually contain the 7,000 cubic inches any 
nearer than does the common flour barrel, as either one 
will pass readily as a standard apple measure. 

In regard to apple boxes, only two sizes have been 
recognized in the United States. The standard apple 
box which corresponds with the dimensions required by 
the laws of the States of New York and Maine, and the 
special box which is the one required by the laws of 
Canada. 

Western people have been using this Canadian box 
for a number of years and it has become known in that 
country as the "special apple- box." Hence, the con- 
fusion of terms we sometimes hear: The box that is 
standard in the United States is a special box in Canada 
and our special box is the standard Canadian one. Oc- 
casionally we find half boxes in use, but these are almost 
always marked in terms of a standard box and they are 
well understood by the general trade. 

Package Material. — A number of different woods are 
used in making apple barrels. In most cases the staves 
are made of pine or spruce or some of the other soft 
woods. They are cut by machinery and have to be 
shaped afterwards. Some of the material that goes into 
the more fancy barrels is planed, but the more common 
apple barrel is left in the rough as it comes from the 



48 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

machine. There are five different kinds of hoops used 
on the common apple barrel: The sawed hoop, the 
shaved hop, the split hoop, the iron hoop and the wire 
hoop. All of these are used more or less satisfactorily, 
but either the iron or the sawed one is recommended as 
making the strongest and best appearing barrel. 

Standard boxes are almost always made of some kind 
of pine or spruce, occasionally linden or cottonwood 
boxes are seen, but these are not generally satisfactory. 




Fig. 32.— VARIOUS TYPES OF FRUIT PACKAGES MADE 
FROM VENEER 

On the Pacific Coast, a good many boxes are made out 
of red wood, especially for the fruit that is packed for 
the cheaper trade. Box material, as a rule, is cheaper, 
easier to handle, and for equal bulk compares very 
favorably with the cost of the apple barrel. 

Small fruits like berries are almost always in pack- 
ages made from hard wood. The small splint baskets 
are usually cut from veneer. Practically all of the 
quart or pint baskets and many of the larger splint 
baskets are made of this veneer (Fig. 32), which is cut 



FRUIT PACKAGES 



49 



from hard wood. 
Pine or soft wood 
does not easily 
work up into ve- 
il e e r . Most of 
these small bas- 
kets are put in 
larger containers 
or crates, and 
very often these 
containers are 
constructed of ve- 
neer wood. These 
are not the best 
kind of contain- 
ers, however, be- 
cause they soon 
warp and get out 
of shape and can 
seldom be repair- 
ed. Those con- 
tainers made of 
substantial soft 
pieces are usually 
considered the 
best. 

Handling o f 
Package Materi- 
al. — There has 
been in the past 
considerable wor- 
ry over the best 




Fig. 33.— A FORM FOR SETTING UP 
APPLE BOXES 

End pieces on left. Sides on right. Bottoms and 
cleats on rack in center. 




Fig. 34.— MAKING APPLE BOXES 



50 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



means of handling barrels and boxes. Almost all of the 
standard boxes are now shipped in the shook and set up 
on the farm or in the packing-house where used. "When 
contracting for shooks for boxes the specifications must be 
made specifically and uniformity insisted upon. The di- 
mensions for the pieces of a standard box are as follows : 
Ends, % x 10% x ll 1 /^ inches in one piece ; sides, % x 
10y 2 xl9y2 inches in one piece; top and bottom, 14 x 





Fig. 35.— STANDARD APPLE BOX CONSTRUCTION 
a — End view. Method of nailing; b — bottom or top. Method of spacing. 

5 x 191/2 inches in two pieces, and cleats, V2 x % x 10 
inches in two pieces. 

The top and bottom pieces may be made in three 
pieces instead of two, if desired. It is necessary to have 
these pieces thin, so they will spring over the bulge and 
not injure the fruit. In setting up the boxes the only 
precaution is to have the top and bottom pieces equally 



FRUIT PACKAGES 



51 




Fig. 36. — TOOLS FOR BARREL MAKING 

a — Chamfer knife for cutting the bevels on barrel staves; b — Crozer for 

cutting grooves in the staves for the head. 

spaced, and allow for spring inside of the side pieces. 
(Fig. 35.) The nails used are four-penny, cement-coated, 
wire ones. 

A great many of the barrels are still set up in the 
factory and shipped or hauled to the place where used. 
A grower can easily set up the apple box, but it re- 
quires some outlay or expense for equipping a shop to 
set up a standard barrel. This has led to the establish- 
ing of a great number of cooper shops all through the 
apple-growing sections. Barrel material is becoming 
more scarce each year and it is getting difficult to get 
a decent apple 
barrel without 
paying almost 
prohibitory 
prices. A small 
outfit that can be 
used on the farm 
to set up barrels 
will cost about 
$25 or $30. One 




Fig. 37.— A SET OF TRUSS HOOPS USED 
IN SETTING UP A BARREL 



52 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



will need to have a special heater to use in bending the 
staves. Certain companies are manufacturing these 
small outfits for about $25 for a complete set. 

It is not at all difficult to properly make a barrel if 

the tools (Figs. 36 and 
37) necessary are had, 
and the saving in the 
cost of material over 
the barrel already set up 
will be from 10 to 14 
cents a barrel. A good 
barrel in the Eastern 
states costs from 30 to 
40 cents. The materials 
for making such a barrel 
will cost from 20 to 30. 
Whether the individual 
fruit grower can afford 
to set up his own barrels 
will depend largely upon 
his ability to arrange 
the time and labor 
problems. 

A barrel ought not to 
be set up very long be- 
fore being used. They 
ought not to be made in 
the winter time and then 
held over until the next 
fall unless carefully 
stored to prevent weathering or discoloring. This would 
mean that the barrels are to be made at a time when 




Fig. 38.— FORM FOR SETTING UP 

A BARREL 

The lower chine and quarter truss hoops 

in position. 



FRUIT PACKAGES 53 

weather conditions are unfit for outdoor work just pre- 
ceding the harvesting period. Whether or not a grower 
is to make his own apple barrels will depend upon 
local conditions. If the barrels have to be shipped by 
railroad, they consume a great deal of space and the 




Fig. 39.— WINDLASS AND ROPE 

For tightening up the staves to receive the chine truss-hoop. This is done 

after the heating so the staves will bend. 

freight rates are almost excessive, while if shipped in 
the staves they occupy much smaller space and are much 
more easily handled. 

In setting up the standard apple barrel, the staves 
are first put into a form (Fig. 38) supporting the truss 
hoops — a wide one and then a narrow one. When the form 
is complete they are then tightened up by the windlass 
(Fig. 39) and placed over the heater. When they arc 
sufficiently heated to allow them to bend, they are tight- 



54 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



ened up until the other truss hoop will go on. The barrel 
is taken out of the form, the hoops measured (Fig. 40) 
and nailed (Fig. 41) and pushed down over the truss 




Fig. 40. 
Measuring for size of hoop. 



Fig. 41. 

Special vise with foot-lever for 
nailing hoops. 



hoop (Fig. 42). The two-quarter hoops are put on first; 
then the chine hoops. When the second chine hoop is in 
place the head is put in (Fig. 43) and the first chine 
hoop put on. It requires from 10 to 20 minutes for an 
expert to put up a barrel. 



FRUIT PACKAGES 55 

Special Packing Material. — Most all of the standard 
fruit packages call for certain other accessories which it 
is advisable to use with them. For example, in the 




Fig. 42. 

The quarter hoop is pushed down Placing the head, with quarter 

over the chine truss-hoop and tight- hoop in position, 
ened. 

barrel there are paper liners that are put around the 
inside of the barrel, and corrugated caps to put on the 
ends. The latter are supposed to keep the fruit from 
bruising. Then, on top of these caps are sometimes 



56 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

used lace circles which add to the attractiveness of the 
barrel when exposed for sale. There are also a number 
of so-called winter cushions or basket cushions. These 
go upon the top of the barrel or basket to prevent the 
fruit from getting crushed and, to some extent, protect 
against winter injury. These cushions are little used 
and their expense for other than the most fancy fruit 
would make them prohibitive. 

For box packing, there are the box liners, the layer 
boards which are pasteboard pieces to go between the 
layers of apples when no wraps are used, and the tissue 
wraps which cover the apples. The tissue wraps are 
of two or three different grades, but the light tissue is 
usually put on fruit that has no stems, while the heavy 
tissue is used on apples and pears, where there is danger 
of the stem penetrating the paper. 



CHAPTER IV 

FRUIT-PACKING OPERATIONS 

Packing Apples in Barrels. — The operation of packing 
apples in barrels is not a difficult one if everything is 
arranged for convenience in doing the work. Two or 
three barrels are provided within easy reach of the 
packing table. These are to accommodate the different 
grades or sizes of fruit. If many of the apples are 
bad, the lot is gone over previous to the packing and 
the culls thrown out. It is customary to do the sizing 
during the process of packing, but it ought not to be 
necessary for the packer to look for worm holes, bruises, 
etc. This should be done beforehand. 

Preparing the Barrel. — As the barrels come from the 
cooper shop, both ends are headed up. One end is 
selected for the face of the barrel and the other head 
removed. The first operation is to nail in the head. 
This is done by nailing through the first hoop into 
each piece of the head (Fig. 44). "Where there are more 
than two pieces, six to eight nails will be necessary to hold 
them properly. The two-quarter hoops' are next securely 
nailed (Fig. 45) . If the barrels are intended for foreign 
shipment these are given considerable attention. The 
shipping of fruit long distances has the tendency to 
spread the barrel, and if the hoops slip or expand, the 
fruit arrives at its destination in a "slack pack," 

57 



58 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



On the foreign market considerable fanlt has been 
found with these "slacks." The fruit becomes bruised 
in transit and from 25 to 75 cents is deducted from each 
barrel because of this condition. The quarter hoops are 
driven down tightly and then securely nailed with three- 
penny wire nails, using two or three to the hoop, being 





Fig. 44. 

Nailing in the head of the barrel 

before packing. 



Fig. 45. 

Nailing the quarter hoops. The 
chine hoops are not nailed until 
head is in place. 



careful to have them thoroughly clinched inside. In 
nailing in the head, four-penny box nails are considered 
the best. 

Before putting any fruit in the barrel the corrugated 
caps, lace circles or barrel liners are put in place if 
they are intended to be used. The corrugated or rough- 
ened part of the cap is put down on the wood and then 



FRUIT-PACKING OPERATIONS 



59 




the lace circle on top of this. It is well to use some 
kind of paper to keep the fruit from coming in direct 
contact with the wood, but the use of the fancy lace 
circle or more expensive cap is not customary except 
for the very finest grades. Sometimes customers request 
the use of these special packing materials, and in such 
cases they should always be used. 

Facing the Head. — This is an important operation 
and is accomplished with 
considerable care. The 
packer will learn how 
many apples will be re- 
quired of any given size 
to make one layer over 
the end of the barrel. He 
selects sufficient of these 
from the grading table, 
being careful to get uni- 
form specimens both in size and color. They are 
put into a swing-handled basket and emptied into the 
bottom of the barrel. The packer then reaches in 
and arranges these apples in a circle around the 
bottom, placing the stems down. If the stems are 
so long that the apple rides over them, they are cut off 
by a special stemming tool. This resembles a small plier 
and can be purchased from orchard supply houses. 

There is considerable diversity in methods of facing 
barrels throughout the various fruit-growing sections, 
but most of the growers prefer to face two rows, the 
second row resting on the interspaces between the first. 
This gives a better appearance when the barrel is opened 
for inspection. Of course, it is understood that the end 



Fig. 46. 
A well-faced barrel. 



60 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

of the barrel that is filled first becomes the top of the 
barrel when the fruit is opened on the market. 

Filling In. — After the facing 'has been completed the 
apples are then gently poured in from the grading table 
by using the swing-handled basket (Fig. 47 a). Every 
precaution is taken that in this "filling in" process 
the same shape, size and color of apples are used all 
through the barrel as are used in the facing. The only 
legitimate difference being, that for facing apples more 



Fig. 47.— TOOLS FOR BARREL PACKING 

a — Filling in basket; b — hoop tightener; c — sizing board; d — follower. 

attention may be paid to getting specimens of the same 
color. Apples that run uniform in size and color all the 
way through the barrel will easily bring 25 to 35% more 
than a mixture. The sizing can be done during the pack- 
ing process if there are two or three barrels standing con- 
venient that can be filled at the same time. 

Racking the Barrel. — As the process of filling con- 
tinues the barrel is gently racked back and forth to settle 
the apples down as closely together as possible. The 
barrel is set on a plank which is about 2 inches less 



FRUIT-PACKING OPERATIONS 



61 



in width than the diameter of the barrel, and the rack- 
ing done on this plank. It ought not to be too violent 
because of danger in bruising the fruit. About three 
rackings during the filling-in operation is sufficient. 
Use of the Follower. — This tool is a round piece of 

wood just the size of the head 
of the barrel, lined with felt 
on one side and a hand hold 
on the other (Fig. 47 cZ). At 
the last racking operation this 
follower is placed on top and 
held down firmly while the 
apples are being settled. This 
evens up the top of the barrel 
and makes it easier for the 
next process. Each packer is 
provided with one of these 
followers. 

The Tailing Process. — This 
is the arranging of the fruit 
on the filled barrel so as to 
get an even bearing for the 
head. When the last racking 
is done the top layer of apples should come from 2 to 3 
inches from the top of the barrel. The balance of this 
space is then filled in by hand, arranging the fruit with 
the stems up as near as possible in the same manner as the 
facing. The tailing process is the hardest part of the 
entire packing operation. The apples ought to be even 
on top so that when the head is put in, pressure will be 
applied equally on all of the specimens. 




Fig. 48. 

A slack barrel from insufficient 

racking. 



62 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



Just how high the top layer should be is a matter to 
be determined by experience, judging from the variety 
of the apple. Soft apples will give more than hard 
ones without hurting. If the apples project just about 
even with the top of the barrel, they will be approxi- 
mately correct and then when the head is put on they 
will be pressed down the thickness of the head, plus 
the thickness of the chine of the barrel. If too much 




rr" 



a — Properly tailed. 



b — Careless work. 



Fig. 49. 



pressure is applied the apples will be bruised and the 
two top layers will be practically ruined for commercial 
purposes. 

Heading the Barrel. — After the fruit is placed on top 
the best that can be done, the corrugated cap is put on, 
if used, and then the barrel head laid on top. This 
is gently forced into position by a barrel press until it 
rests in the crozes and then the hoops are driven in 
place. 

Nailing. — After the head has been put on it is nailed 
fast through the first hoop in the same manner as the 
face of the barrel was at the beginning. 



FRUIT-PACKING OPERATIONS 



63 




Heading Presses. — There are several different makes 
of barrel headers on the market, most of them working 
satisfactorily. Some of them exert pressure by means of 
a screw while others 
use a lever. The 
ones that have the 
circle (Fig. 50 b) 
which exerts the 
pressure on the 
head is better than 
the long, flat piece, 
because of the even 
distribution of 
pressure over the 
end of the barrel. 
Where the flat 
press heads are 
used they often 
slip sideways and, 

in the hands of careless packers, do considerable damage 
to the fruit. 

Packing Fruit in Boxes. — It requires much more skill 
and practice to put up a successful box pack than it does 
with barrels. The apples must be graded to a more uni- 
form size and more care taken in every way. Boxes 
are placed on the side of the packing table (Fig. 52), giv- 
ing the right height to meet the convenience of the worker. 
These boxes can be put on either end of the grading 
table to suit the packer, depending on whether he pre- 
fers to use the right hand or the left in placing the 
fruit. 

Each box is fitted with two box-lining papers. These 



Fig. 50.— TWO TYPES OF BARREL PRESSES 

b is preferable, as it exerts a more even pressure 

on the barrel head. 



64 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



are cut to fit the length of the box and lap about two- 
thirds of the way on the top and the same on the 
bottom. In placing these papers in position an extra 
crease needs to be put in to the bottom to allow for the 

spring when the lid is put 
on (Fig. 53). If this 
pleat or fold is not pres- 
ent, the spring of the bot- 
tom will tear the paper. 
Occasionally box liners 
fitting over the end as 
well as the sides will be 
found, but these are sel- 
dom used and are not at 
all necessary. 

If the apples are to be 
wrapped in tissue no other 
package material is used. 
If they are not to be 
wrapped, the so-called 
layer boards are used be- 
tween each layer of apples. These keep the fruit in place 
and add to the attractiveness and appearance of the 
pack. It is customary in most fruit sections to use the 
wraps in preference to the layer boards. Where wraps 
are used there is not much difference in the cost of ma- 
terials and very little difference in the time required to 
properly pack a box. Without doubt those in tissue 
wraps will carry farther and "stand up" better for a 
much longer time. Besides the tissues serve as a cushion 
to prevent bruising in handling. 

There being only two sizes of boxes used for apples, 




Fig. 51. 
Barrel lever press. 



FRUIT-PACKING OPERATIONS 



65 



it is sometimes difficult to pack all the different shapes 
and sizes of apples in these boxes. Therefore, consider- 
able time and practice is necessary before a packer be- 
comes efficient. In the larger orchard sections of the 
West packing schools are held where experts may be 
trained to do this work. In fact, where cooperative 




Fig. 52.— PACKING TABLE 
Boxes in position. 



organizations are in vogue, growers are not allowed to 
pack their own fruit but the work is done under the 
direction of the organization by a corps of experienced 
or licensed packers. On the side of the box is placed a 
little arrangement known as a "paper hod" to hold the 
tissue for convenience in the wrapping process. 

Terms Used in Box Packing. — Before one can suc- 
cessfully understand the operation of packing apples in 
boxes, there are several terms with which he must be- 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



come familiar. The 
first one of these is 
the style of pack. The 
sizes and shapes of 
apples vary so great- 
ly that to accommo- 
date them to the same 
size box, several dif- 
ferent methods of 
placing them have 
been devised which 
are designated as 
packs or style of 
packs. These are 
known respectively as 

the straight, offset and diagonal. (As shown in Fig. 56.) 
In the straight pack, every apple is directly above 

or at the side of each other apple. Lines run straight, 

lengthways, crossways, and up and down in the box. 

The straight pack is very popular when the apples are 




Fig. 53. 
a-a — Correct folds in box liners. 




Fig. 54.— INCORRECT FOLDS IN BOX LINERS 



FRUIT-PACKING OPERATIONS 



67 






of the right size, but only certain 
standard sizes lend themselves to 
this method. In the off-set pack, 
the apples are laid in the inter- 
spaces of the preceding layer, re- 
quiring a half apple to complete 
the rows crossways and length- 
wise of the box. In the diagonal 
pack, the apples do not run in 
straight lines across the box, but 
diagonally. This pack is most 
used and lends itself to far great- 
er varieties and types of apple 
than either of the others. 

The number of apples required 
to reach across the box is known as tiers (Fig. 57 a). 
These vary from 2%, 3, 3V 2 , and up to 6 tiers in a 
box. The number of apples required to cover the bot- 
tom of the box would be known as a layer (Fig. 



Fig. 54a. 

Box pack where layer-boards 

are used instead of wraps. 




Fig. 55.— SCHOOL FOR INSTRUCTING ORCHARD MEN IN 
FRUIT-PACKING 



68 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

57 b). If four apples would reach to the top of the box, 
we would then have a four "layer pack." The count 
is usually placed on the outside of the box, and means 
the number of apples in the package. This is required 
by most organizations and enables the purchaser to 
know how many apples there are in the package. 

In order to get these counts it is necessary to keep 
in mind the number of apples in the length of the box 






J)jagonal Offset Straight 

Fig. 56.— STYLE OF PACKS 
Diagonal pack is most used. The others are gradually going out of use. 



as well as in the width, and since these vary in the 
different styles of packs, they are usually designated by 
two figures. In starting a diagonal pack, two apples 
could be placed at the end of the box and then two follow- 
ing on the spaces between these. This would be known as 
a "two- two" pack in width (Fig. 58 b). The same ar- 
rangement is followed regarding the number of apples 
in the length of the box. 

In order to compute accurately and quickly the num- 
ber of apples in each layer, it is necessary to know the 



FRUIT-PACKING OPERATIONS 



69 




a — One tier. 



b — One la^er. 



Fig, 57. 



number of apples in the length of these rows. Most 
places where box packs are used a table for calculating 
the number of fruit 
in a box has been 
worked out. The one 
following is typical of 
most of these tables. 
Altogether, for both 
the standard and 
special box, there are 
60 different arrange- 
ments of packs. The 
table given includes 
cnly about 25 of the 
more common. New 
arrangements can be 




Fig. 58. 
-3-3 Offset pack, b — 2-2 Diagonal pack. 



70 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



worked out from a study of those that are here 
given. 



STANDARD BOX PACK 









Apples 


Apples 




Approx. size 








per row 


width 


No. apples 


apples in 


Tier 


Style 


Layers 


length 


of pack 


per box 


inches 


3 


Straight 


3 


5 — 5 




3 




45 


31/2 x 3V 2 


3 




3 


6 — 6 




3 




54 


3% x 3 


4 


" 


4 


6 — 6 




4 




96 


2% x 3 


4 


" 


4 


7 — 7 




4 




112 


2% x 2% 


4 


" 


4 


8 — 8 




4 




128 


2% x 2V 4 


5 


" 


5 


8 — 8 




5 




200 


2y 2 x 2 


3% 


Offset 


4 


3 — 4 


3 


— 


3 


84 


3% x 3 


3% 


" 


4 


4 — 4 


3 


— . 


3 


96 


3% x 2% 


4% 


" 


4 


4 — 5 


4 


— 


4 


146 


2y 2 K 3 


4*4 


" 


4 


5 — 5 


4 


— 


4 


160 


2% X 2% 


3% 


Diagonal 


4 


4 — 4 


2 


— 


2 


64 




3V 2 


" 


4 


4 — 5 


2 


— 


2 


72 




3% 


" 


4 


5 — 5 


2 


— 


2 


80 




3% 


" 


4 


5 — 6 


2 


— 


2 


88 




4y 2 


" 


5 


6 — 6 


3 


— 


2 


150 




4% 


" 


5 


6 v— 7 


3 


— 


2 


163 




4y 2 


" 


5 


7 — 7 


3 


— 


2 


175 






♦ 




SPECIAL BOX PACK 






3 


Straight 


3 


7 — 7 




3 




63 




4 


" 


4 


8 — 8 




4 




128 




4 


" 


4 


9 — 9 




4 




144 




5 


" 


5 


10 — 10 




5 




250 




3% 


Diagonal 


4 


6 — 6 


2 


— 


2 


96 




3y 2 


4 


6 — 7 


2 


— 


2 


104 




3% 


" 


4 


7 — 7 


2 


— 


2 


112 




3% 


" 


4 


7 — 8 


2 


— 


2 


120 




4% 


" 


5 


7 — 8 


3 


— 


2 


188 




4% 


" 


5 


8 — 8 


3 


— 


2 


200 





Filling the Box. — When everything is properly ar- 
ranged for work, the packer places the box on the rack, 
puts the paper hod on the side, the liners in place, and 
then begins the process of wrapping and filling in. For 
the beginner, this will require considerable attention and 
often a number of attempts before a desirable pack is 
worked out. Four or five apples of the average size may 
be placed in the box before wrapping and a study made 
of the arrangement which they are likely to best fit. 
After a little practice, it can be easily determined 
whether to take a diagonal, straight or an off-set pack. 



FRUIT-PACKING OPERATIONS 



71 



For apples that are almost round or spherical, little 
attention will need to be paid to the way they are placed 
in the box, but for the most part, uniformity is required 
and if the pack is started with the apples on end this 
same relative position should be maintained throughout. 
In most places, what is called the "side pack" (Fig. 60), 
or as it is sometimes designated "cheek pack" is pre- 
ferred. Apples are placed on their side with the stems 
projecting towards the side of the box rather than 




Fig. 59.— END PACKS 
Desirable for very fiat apples. 



towards the end. When one arrangement is selected for 
the pack, it should not be varied throughout the box, 
either in regard to the placing of the apples or their 
position on side or end. 

Wrapping the Apples. — To do this best, the paper is 
taken in the left hand with the palm up. To facilitate 
the removing of the paper from the hod a rubber finger- 
stole is used. These can be purchased at most any drug 
store. The apple is picked up in the right hand, placed 



72 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



in the left at about the center of the paper, then bring- 
ing both hands palm upward under the apple the thumbs 
are run around to the top and the apple is rolled, bring- 
ing the corners of the paper in over the top. As the 
apple is being wrapped, it is moved towards the box and 
by the time the wrapping is completed, the right hand 
places the apple where it belongs in the package. 

In wrapping fruit that has long stems, the heavy 




Fig. 60.— SIDE PACKS ARE USED IN THE WEST 



tissue or Oregon wraps are best. The "wad" or heavy 
part is placed over the stem to prevent them from punc- 
turing the paper (Fig. 66) and giving an unsightly ap- 
pearance. A little practice in placing the apple in the 
proper position in the hand will soon enable the packer to 
get the "wad" in the right place. 

Requirements of a Good Pack. — Every box is made 
to conform with certain well -understood requirements. 
Outside of the condition of the fruit itself, certain things 



FRUIT-PACKING OPERATIONS 



73 




Fig. 61. 
Holding the paper in the left hand, 
palm up, place the apple near center. 



Fig. 62. 
Slide the left thumb up, bringing 
the paper up over the apple. 




Fig. 63., Fig. 64. 

With both hands, palms together, Slide the thumbs up over the top, 

slide the first fingers up under the catching the corners under the left 

apple. thumb. 



74 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



are always looked for by 
the handler or buyer of 
the fruit. In the first 
place, the packing must 
be tight, so that the apples 
will not move or rattle 
about in handling. To 
accomplish this, what is 
generally known as the 
swell or bulge (Fig. 67) 
is put on each package. 
That is, in filling the box, 
the apples in the center are 
higher than those on the 
end. This is usually from 
a half to three-quarters of 
an inch higher in the center than the top of the box. 




Fig. 65. 
Bring the right hand from under, up 
over the top. 



A 






?-■ it 


..'■ - - >.v ../'-v.' ,., .#f<»:--y;r..' 


\ ™ * 


.\ % ... V-...-V 


-m 


X \V':?"\ ":: :: ? %:: v 




mx/' "wm 


.','■/;■.■■ 




\ Hvy^ 




lii &! 



Fig. 66.— NOT PROPERLY WRAPPED 
Sterns should not puncture paper. 



FRUIT-PACKING OPERATIONS 



75 




Fig. 67.— BULGE ON BOXED FRUIT 
Left too high. Center about right. Right too low. 

"When the top is nailed on, the spring of the slats keeps 
the apples tight yet does not exert enough pressure to 
bruise the fruit. 

Then by making use of 
the cleats on each end, 
the boxes can be piled or 
tiered up in storage or 
shipping and the bulge in 
the center will not be suf- 
ficient to cause the fruit 
to be bruised by the 
weight of the packages. 
This swell is made uni- 
form across the box and 
diminishes gradually to- 
wards each end making a 
sort of a circle in outline. 
At the end, each apple 
projects above the box Fi s- 68 - 

~^l ^ ^l^,,.*- ~~+ ™ ~£ 1 and 3 correct bulge. 2 and 4 slack. 

only about one-quarter 01 _. , , . .. t . ., . 

^ ^ Closed packages should not be piled on 

an inch. If more than the face, but always on the side. 



1 


■ . 


iT" " — ' ""*• 





MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 




m^'''-0m;-\^mi k 



m, i 



J, 'is ,11 In ur%/% 





Fig. 69.— GOOD ALIGNMENT— GOOD PACKS 

this, the nailing of the tops will bruise the apples. 

The alignment of the rows should be straight, both 
lengthways and diagonally 
across the package (Fig. 69). 
This can be accomplished only 
by the use of uniform-sized 
apples. The papers are put on 
carefully and the "wad" placed 
over the stem, then in case the 
stem is strong enough to tear the 
paper, it will not show through 
in the pack. 

Nailing Device. — Every pack- 
ing shed where boxes are used 

Fig. 70. BAD ALIGNMENT .,, , , , -. .,, 

will need to be equipped with a 

Size not uniform, stems punc- 
turing paper nailing press. This is an ar~ 




FRUIT-PACKING OPERATIONS 



77 



rangement for putting on the tops or covers of the 
boxes. There are a number of different types of presses 
on the market, but the essential principle of all 
of them is some kind of a lever arrangement which will 
catch the boxes on the ends and not exert #ny pressure 
on the fruit except what is required to spring the pieces 
of wood used for cov- 
ers. If these catches 
can be worked auto- 
matically by the foot, 
they will be much 
more convenient be- 
cause it leaves both 
hands free to fit the 
top and do the nail- 
ing. These presses 
can be made by any 
carpenter, or they can 
be purchased from 
package supply 
houses. Along with 
each press is used 
what is known as a 

''Nail Stripper" (Fig. 72). This is a device for holding 
the nails in a convenient way for nailing. Fine wires 
are so arranged that the nails are caught by the head 
and hang loose so the nailer can easily grasp them. 

Rules in Packing. — "Where cooperative organizations 
do the packing, the grower is not allowed to do anything 
but pick and grade the fruit. In some instances the fruit 
is picked by the owner and carried direct to the packing- 
house where experts grade and place the fruit in the 




Fig. 71. — A HOME-MADE BOX 
NAILING PRESS 



78 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 




BOX PRESS USED IN CANADA 



package. In other 
cases, each grow- 
er has his own 
packing -house 
and the organiza- 
tion sends ont a 
corps of packers 
to do the work for 
him. In such 
cases the grower 
i s expected t o 
provide all the 
boxes and wrap- 
ping material, to 
grade the fruit, 
and when every- 
thing is ready, he notifies the organization and they then 

arrange to pack the fruit. 

A crew of packers consists of four men under the 

supervision of a foreman. They go to the packing-house 

of the grower and proceed to pack the fruit. Each 

packer is expected 

to place his own 

box in position, 

put in the liner and 

do t h e wrapping 

and filling in. He 

is not supposed to 

pay any attention 

to bruises or worms 

or anything that 

ought to have been 




Fig. 71b,— WESTERN BOX TRESS 



FRUIT-PACKIXG OPERATIONS 79 

done in the previous grading. The sizing is done dur- 
ing the process of filling. The foreman keeps track of 
the packages, sees that the work is properly done, nails 
on the tops, and stencils on the end the number of apples 
in the box and the number or name of the grower. 

In most cases, the packer himself, being licensed by 
the organization, has his number placed on the package, 
so if at any time a box is returned on account of poor 




Fig. 72. — "NAIL STRIPPER" 

work, the one who is responsible for the packing can 
be forced to correct it or pay for the damage. Each 
packer sets off his own box, and with a pencil places 
on the side the number of apples in the package. This 
allows the foreman to check them when he places the 
number on the outside with a rubber stencil. Where 



80 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 




Fig. 73.— EXPERT BOXERS AT WORK IN A WESTERN 
PACKING-HOUSE 

the packing is done in a central packing-house, a little 
more elaborate system of keeping records is needed. 
This will be discussed under the general subject of co- 
operative organizations. 

Cost of Packing Apples. — It is hard to get a very 
definite comparison of the cost of packing apples in 
boxes or in barrels, but the following figures will serve 
as a guide for the different operations: Making cal- 
culations on the basis of three boxes equal to one barrel, 
the relative costs would be about as follows: Barrels 
cost from 30 to 40 cents; the pasteboard caps about 75 
cents a 100 ; circles about the same ; and the filling and 
packing of the barrel varies from 10 to 25 cents, depend- 
ing upon the variety. For apple boxes, the first cost 
runs from 10 to 15 cents, the setting up 1 to 2 cents 
each, box liners 15 cents a 100, layer boards 75 cents 



FRUIT-PACKING OPERATIONS 81 

a 100, wrapping paper 35 cents a 1,000, and the filling 
and nailing of the boxes about 5 to 7 cents each. 

Or making comparison in another way, the cost of 
barrels runs from 30 to 40 cents; corrugated caps, 1*4 
to 2 cents ; lace circles, l 1 /^ to 2 cents ; packing and head- 
ing, 10 to 25 cents or a total of 42 y 2 to 69 cents a barrel. 
The cost of three boxes ranges from 33 to 48 cents ; the 
making, from 1 to 2 cents ; paper wraps, 10 to 14 cents ; 
paper box liners, 1 cent; filling in fruit, 15 to 21 cents 
or a total of 60 to 86^ cents for the barrel equivalent. 



fl W^tfi? 


i 1 

< 1 


KT 4 jm^-' 


: 0; <m 


«L M 


1 

m 

Mm 



Fig. 74.— LITHOGRAPHED LABELS FOR BOXES AND BARRELS 

Labeling the Fruit Package. — After the fruit has 
been properly placed in the package and sealed up, it 



82 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



must be labeled to conform either to the customs of the 
markets or to the requirements of the laws of the differ- 
ent states. Some states are very explicit about the label- 
ing, while others have no law 
governing' the subject at all. In 
the State of Maine, the require- 
ments would be about as fol- 
lows: 

11 There shall be affixed in a 
conspicuous place on the out- 
side of the package a plainly 
printed statement clearly stat- 
ing the size of the package in 
terms of standard bushel box or 
standard barrel; the name and 
address of the owner or shipper 
of the apples at the time of pick- 
ing; the name of the variety; 
the class or grade of the apples 
contained therein, and if grown 
in Maine, that fact shall be 
plainly stated." This law un- 
doubtedly was the result of an effort to advertise certain 
grades of Maine grown apples. It was discovered that 
certain shippers were buying apples of other states and 
selling them as Maine grown apples, the reason given be- 
ing that certain varieties colored up better and developed 
better flavor in the northern section of the country than 
they did farther south. 

The United States law and that of New York state 
practically agree in their requirements for branding 
packages. They do not specify the size of the apple but 




Fig. 75.— MACHINE FOR 

MARKING FRUIT 

PACKAGES 

[t prints all the information 
at one stroke. 



FRUIT-PACKING OPERATIONS 



83 



do require that the package be so labeled as to indicate 
the minimum size. Apples that average 2y 2 inches in 
diameter or above, should be labeled "Standard grade, 
minimum size, 2y 2 inches," and this would mean that 
at least 95% of the apples contained in the package 
shall be 2y 2 inches or more in trarlsverse diameter. 




Fig. £6.— PACKING SWEET CHERRIES IN CALIFORNIA 



Nearly all of the Western fruit-growing organizations 
have a registered "trade-mark" or "brand" and each 
grower is instructed to use these stancfard marks. In 
some sections, the grower's name and address is put on 
each package. In other places the growers have numbers 
which are put on each package for identification pur- 
poses in case the work is not up to standard. 

For the purpose of getting this information on the 



84 modern: fruit marketing 

outside of the package, two methods are used; one is 
the so-called stencil and the other a lithographed label. 
The stencils are cut from pieces of tin or copper and the 
label is painted on through the letters cut in the stencil. 
In the case of the lithographed labels, a large colored 
picture representing a trade-mark or brand is made 
from standard cuts, then the information about the size 
and grade is put on this paper with a rubber stamp. 

There is no question among most of the progressive 
fruit growers but what the lithographs are the best. 
They will answer to a number of different varieties of 
fruit and are much more attractive and also serve a 
better purpose in advertising a brand or grade of fruit. 
These lithograph labels are made in sizes suitable for 
both barrels and boxes and can be variously printed to 
meet the needs or desires of the grower. In this way, 
the individual '"trade-marks" or special advertising 
matter can be used together with the other information 
required on the package. 



CHAPTER V 

FRUIT STORAGE 

The question of storage of fruit has become of vastly 
more importance during the last decade than ever before, 
and each month sees some new advancement or develop- 
ment along fruit storage lines. 

Objects of Storage. — There are four main reasons 
why fruit is stored: 

(1) For family use. 

(2) To ripen up before selling. 

(3) To tide over periods of over-supply. 

(4) To prolong the period of keeping. 

The first is the oldest and longest in use and consti- 
tutes a very important part. However, it is pretty 
well worked out by each individual family and does not 
need to be further commented on here. 

The " ripening-up ' ' of the fruit before selling is an 
important consideration, because fruit thus ripened is 
often of better quality than when left on the trees. 
Certain varieties and kinds of fruit will keep only a 
few days while others can be kept, under proper con- 
ditions, for months. Often the degree of flavor or aroma 
developed in the fruit depends on the conditions under 
which it is ripened. Each different fruit has to be 
studied in this particular and treated in accordance with 
its specific demands. 

85 



86 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

The third consideration is of more importance than 
the others in so far as commercial fruit growing is con- 
cerned. The term "over-supply," as here used, refers 
not necessarily to the amount of fruit produced but 
to the quantity that is offered for consumption at any 
one time. 

The terms "over-supply" and "over-production" are 
often used synonymously, but incorrectly so. There may 
be very much more fruit offered for sale than the people 
want at any one time and yet far from a real over- 
production. We may say, in fact, that over-production 
rarely, if ever, occurs, but over-supply is a very fre- 
quent market condition. 

Most fruits ripen rapidly, and are grown over such a 
large area that it makes an enormous quantity that must 
be sold at one time. If all of this is rushed to the 
large markets, there will soon be offered for sale more 
fruit than can be consumed. If, on the other hand, some 
well-organized plan is in vogue by which the over-supply 
may be stored, then this can be spread over a much 
longer time and hence an over-supply avoided. 

The prolonging of the period in which fruit can be 
kept in good condition adds to its commercial value. 
It gives the consumer a wider range to choose from, and 
allows the use of fresh fruit the . year around. Many 
perishable fruits which normally would never reach the 
northern markets are now possible because of the length- 
ening of the keeping time by the use of cold storage. 

Requirements of Fruit for Storage. — In order to store 
fruit to the best advantage, certain requirements are 
necessary: (1) Good fruit. (2) Proper handling. (3) 
A control of the temperature. (4) A proper humidity 



FRUIT STORAGE 87 

in the storage room. Only fruit that is in a prime con- 
dition is worthy of being stored. It ought to be No. 1 
or fancy in every respect, containing no bruises, worm 
holes or blemishes of any kind. 

In making use of public storage, the fruit must be 
properly packed and sealed, so that when it is removed 
from storage, the packages will not need to be opened 
until they reach the consumer. It is necessary also to 
know the temperature, because no fruit will keep well 
unless the temperature remains even and does not fluc- 
tuate. In most cases a lower temperature than the sur- 
rounding outside conditions, is necessary. As the tem- 
perature runs down towards the freezing point, the 
ripening processes of the fruit is gradually slowed up, 
the decay organisms do not work as rapidly, and alto- 
gether, the length of life or keeping qualities of the 
fruit is greatly increased. The humidity refers to the 
amount of moisture in the air. This is measured in 
grains per cubic foot of space. When the air is sat- 
urated or contains all the moisture it will hold, it is 
designated as 100% humidity. Beyond this point, pre- 
cipitations as rain or fog result. 

Most fruits run high in water content, varying from 80 
to 83 or 84%. If the humidity of the atmosphere in 
which the fruit is stored is more than 85%, the tendency 
is for the fruit to decay. Moisture will collect on the 
surface of the fruit in drops, and forms ideal conditions 
for the germinating of decay organisms. On the other 
hand, if there is less moisture in the atmosphere than 
in the fruit, there will be a general tendency for the 
fruit to dry out, and hence become shrivelled or lose 
weight. Fruit that drys out in transit, loses in size as 



88 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



well as in weight. This is one of the factors which 
causes slack packs resulting in badly bruised or injured 
fruit. 

Kinds of Fruit Storage. — The most common and the 
oldest means of storing fruit, was a cellar under a resi- 
dence. This is permissible when storing for family use, 




Fig. 77.— A SMALL FARM STORAGE CELLAR, OR "DUG-OUT" 



but for commercial purposes, it needs to be discouraged. 
Most cellars in the Northern states are more or less 
damp, they are not well ventilated, temperature cannot 
be properly controlled, and as a result, the fruit does 
not keep well and, upon decaying, endangers the health 
of the occupants of the resident above. The more im- 



FRUIT STORAGE 



89 



portant storage for small farmers or fruit growers is 
what is usually designated as a " dug-out' ' (Fig. 77). 
This consists of a small cellar dug into the side of a slop- 
ing bank. It may be constructed simply as a cellar or as 
a basement under the packing-house previously men- 
tioned. 

Two principles must be kept in mind for this kind of 
a storage house. In the first place, it must be well in- 




Fig. 78. — SMALL STORAGE AND PACKING-HOUSE 
This is built from hollow tile. The outside finish is to be stucco. 



sulated against the low temperatures during the cold 
winter weather. Secondly, it must be arranged for 
proper ventilation and for the purpose of keeping the 
room as cool as possible without freezing. A small 
cellar 18 x 24 feet will easily accommodate 200 to 250 
barrels of apples. It can be constructed of stone or 
cement and lined with wood, leaving a ' ' dead air space ' ' 
inside in which is put some special insulating material j 



90 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

or common building paper can be used between the 
boards to protect the cellar against freezing from 
outside. 

It is best to make the windows double, and extra 
wooden blinds for the outside to put on when the tem- 
perature reaches zero or below. For controlling the 
ventilation in such a house, a pipe is brought up under 
the floor, reaching out 30 or 40 feet away from the house. 
It affords both drainage and an inlet for cold air. The 
air is brought in under the floor and coming up through, 
is easily distributed over the bottom. As it gets warm, 
it rises and is taken off through an outlet in the roof. 

If no rooms are to be built above the cellar, cement can 
be used throughout. The outside walls can be made of 
stone, brick, hollow tile or concrete as desired. Twelve- 
inch walls would answer if the building was made of 
stone, while 6 to 8 inches thickness will only be re- 
quired if other materials are used. 

Particular attention must be given to drainage, 
Sumps can be made into the air pipes to allow the 
water to run off. If the soil is inclined to be wet, 
seepage through the walls must be looked out for. 
Moisture will collect on the inside walls and the humidity 
become too high. It is always best to cover the inside 
of the cement or stone with some waterproofing material. 
A number of such materials are now offered by the trade. 
Unless the soil is naturally very dry a cement floor is 
desirable. This is easy to keep clean, is durable, and 
will keep the packages free from dirt or soil marks. 

The roof can be made of reinforced concrete 4 or 5 
inches in thickness, according to the width of the house. 
Old railroad "T" rails or second-hand 2-inch pipe can 



FRUIT STORAGE 91 

be used for the main supports. The roof over the drive 
in front can be wood if desired. 

To properly manage such a storage house, the doors 
and windows need to be left open during the nights 
of the early fall when conditions indicate frost. In the 
early morning the house is closed to prevent the rising 
of the temperature during the heat of the day. If this 
is followed up conscientiously during the cold nights, 
by the time the apples are ready to be stored the tem- 
perature of the cellar can be run down to 40 or 45 
degrees. Later, by the middle of October, a temperature 
of 35 to 40 degrees can be maintained. From then on, 
during the winter, proper temperature can be had 
simply by adjusting the cut-offs in the ventilation. 

Such a storage house would cost from $300 to $500 
for the material and could be used for either fruit or 
vegetables. This has proved very successful in the 
Northern states, but farther south, in the Atlantic states, 
or south of the Ohio River, has not been a very great 
success. It is only adapted for the use of the fruit 
growers of the Northern states who have but a few 
hundred barrels to store. 

Local Cold Storages. — These local storage houses are 
usually too large and too expensive for individuals to 
own unless operating upon a very large scale. They are 
used for the most part by cooperative associations and 
the small towns that have only a moderate amount of 
fruit to store. They serve their best purpose in the 
organizations and have developed to such an extent that 
they are now used in handling a large share of the 
fruit. Many organizations shipping perishable fruit 
have one of these local storage houses near the center of 



92 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 




Fig. 



-LOCAL COLD STORAGE 



the shipping point for the surrounding country. They 
are often associated with packing-houses, the fruit be- 
ing brought to the central house to pack and then im- 
mediately transferred to storage. Later, as the season 
advances, the fruit is re-distributed to the larger centers 
of population. Some of these houses are used only for 
temporary storages, simply to hold the fruit for a short 
time until it can be properly marketed. Occasionally 
the fruit goes from these local storage houses to the 
larger public storages in the centers of population. 

Public Storages.— By far, the most expensive and 
most important part of the storage industry is the large 
storage houses in the big cities. These are used not only 
for storage of fruit but also for the storing of meat 
products, vegetables, eggs, etc., and in most large cities 
for the storing of furs to keep during the hot weather 
of the summer. These fill a very desirable and necessary 
place in the economy of food supply, especially in the 



FRUIT STORAGE 



93 



large cities where from 50 to 150 carloads of fruit are 
consumed every day. Without cold storage it would be 
impossible to supply a great many kinds of fruit or any 
one kind for a very long period of time. 

For the most part such storage houses are operated by 
capitalists and are usually incorporated under the laws 
of some of the states. They work independently, for 
the most part, of the producers, simply acting as agents, 
agreeing to keep a certain temperature for a certain con- 
sideration and seldom acting as a selling agent for the 
owners of the stored goods. Such storage plants are 
very expensive, costing at the least $100,000 and rang- 
ing from that up to two or three millions. 

Control of Temperature. — All of the fruit storage 
houses must be provided with proper means of control- 
ling temperature. Most fruits require a low tempera- 
ture for keeping. "When removed from the tree, this 




Fig. 80.— A LARGE PUBLIC COLD STORAGE 



94 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

low temperature is more important than any other single 
consideration. 

In the various types of storages three methods are em- 
ployed to regulate the temperature: (1) Ventilation. 
(2) Ice refrigeration. (3) Mechanical cooling appli- 
ances. The first, ventilation, is applicable to the small 
cold storage cellars in the Northern states or to the dug- 
out previously referred to. Ice refrigeration is used 
mainly in the smaller storage and in the North for the 
larger ones. Mechanical refrigeration is used almost 
entirely in the South and in the larger public storages 
of the Northern and Eastern states. The cost of installa- 
tion between the ice and mechanical methods is consid- 
erably greater for the latter. For small storage houses 
up to 5,000 barrel capacity ice would probably be the 
cheaper. Above that quantity the consensus of opinion 
among storage-house men is in favor of the mechanical 
refrigeration. 

Construction. — The materials from which a storage 
house can be built are numerous. For the cellars con- 
structed under ground, some form of the common hard 
building materials is used, such as stone, brick, cement, 
hollow building tile, etc. Of these the cement and brick 
are more commonly used. Hollow building tile, a burned 
clay product resembling brick, is coming rapidly into 
importance, and is considered more economical and a 
better protection against outside cold. For the part 
above ground, various materials are used for insulating 
the houses against the cold or heat from the outside. 
Wood is most commonly used, and for insulating pur- 
poses such material as building paper, sheet cork, felt, 



FRUIT STORAGE 



95 




Fig. 81.— PRESSED CORK 



waste cotton, mineral wool, and even shavings or saw- 
dust have been used with good results. 

Insulating Materials. — The construction of a modern 
storage house calls for 
great care and attention 
to details of the work. 
Carelessness or the use of 
poor material will often 
result in the inability of 
the operators to control 
the temperature of the 
house. All of the differ- 
ent materials used in .con- 
struction have different 
insulating values. The de- 
gree with which they will 
prevent the passage of 
heat or cold is different 
with each material used. 
For determining the insu- 
lating value of the dif- 
ferent materials, certain 
units in measuring heat 
have been established. 
One used in England, 
and to a considerable ex- 
tent in the United States, 
is commonly known as the 
British Thermal Unit, or, 
B. T. U. It means the 
to raise the temperature 
one degree Fahrenheit. 




Fig. 82.— MINERAL WOOL 




Fig. 83.— FIBER-FELT 

as it is usually written, 

amount of heat required 

of one pound of water 

The French and German 



98 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



unit of measure for heat is the calorie. This equals 
the heat required to raise- one kilogram of water from 
zero to one degree Centigrade. 

Then, in measuring the transmission of heat through 
various insulating materials, calculations are based upon 
the number of B. T. U. that will pass through one square 
foot of substance per hour per degree, difference in 
temperature between the two sides of the substance. 
This enables definite experiments to be carried on and 



AfB^" - 


t$SSBSX&'* s: > 






$Mll^^immM 


$ 



Fig. 84.— CORK BOARD 



the insulating value of different materials can be def- 
initely determined. Substances which allow heat to 
pass through readily are known as good conductors of 
heat". Those which retard the passage of heat are poor 
conductors. Hence, for insulating storage houses against 
heat and cold we always select poor conductors. 

Relative Heat-Conducting Power. — From a number 
of experiments that have been made both in the United 
States and Europe, the following figures have been taken. 

The relative insulating value of the different ma- 
terials are based on water as a standard. As physicists 
use water on a basis of one for the specific gravity of 
other liquids or solids, so in testing for insulating value 




IHSUi-AT/OV FOR FLOOR AtfD CF/UMO 



Double Pa;oer 
7"-0 Board 

T*G Board 
Double Paper 
T-rG. Board 

T+G Board 
Oouble paper 
7~-G. Board. 



BRICK. S70M? orGfMFM: - V^OO D. 




llVSUOATIO/V FOR EXPOSED SIDES 



T^G. Board 
Double Paper 
r^O Board 

T+G. Board 
Double Popan 
77* G Board 

T.+G Board 
OovblePaper 
T^O Board 



r^ 



<f" Air Spxxco^ 

Fill With Cork or mineral Wool 

ItfSULATlOA/ FOR PARTlT/O^S 



T*C Board- 
Double Paper 
7>G Board 



T+Cr. Board 
Double paper 
r*G Board 




wit— .Double Paper 
5 JT" O Board 

Double Paper 
T.-rCr. Board 



Cirnent Floor 



INSULATloH FOR. SASeMENT FLOORS 

Fig. 85.— INSULATION FOR COLD STORAGE ROOMS 



98 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

of the different materials, water under normal conditions 
has been given the value of one. Taking then, water as 
a standard, the other materials in their relative insulat- 
ing power would be as follows: 

Water 1. 

Sand 1.01 

Brick 2. 

Cement 2.25 

Stone 2.95 

Iron 80. 

Copper 455. 

Furs 0.13 

Wood 0.14 to 0.24 

Wool 0.06 

Building paper 0.05 

Dead air space 0.03 

It will be noted from these figures that dead air or 
confined air is the best practical insulator against heat 
or cold. The best known insulator is a vacuum. The 
principle of the common thermos bottle is simply the 
insulating from outside temperature by the use of an 
almost perfect vacuum. Also, the principles of the com- 
mon tireless cooker is a perfect insulation to keep the 
heat confined to the inside of the cooker. Wood is the 
most common of all insulating materials, and perhaps 
building paper, sheet cork, and sawdust in the order 
named are of the next in importance. As a rule, the 
harder mineral substances are poorer insulators than the 
vegetable substances, and so stone, brick or cement where 
used, have to be associated with some of the better insu- 
lating materials. 

Method of Insulation. — For the most part the outside 
of cold storage houses is built of either concrete or brick. 
These are of sufficient strength to support the weight 



FRUIT STORAGE 



99 



of the superstructure and to carry the enormous loads 
of the fruit or material stored. Then inside of these 
structures are placed the other insulating materials to 
protect the fruit from fluctuation in temperatures. In 
some instances dead air spaces are used next to the out- 
side construction, but in most cases they are filled with 
sawdust or some other loose substance. Then the use 
of several layers of matched lumber interspaced with 




Fig. 86.— APPLYING INSULATIONS 



building paper, air spaces or sheet cork gives a poor 
conducting power for the heat from the outside. 

The dead air spaces are at the present time being used 
less than in former years. "While their insulating value 
is beyond question, yet it has been proved by experiment 
that it is almost impossible to make the dead air spaces 
tight enough to prevent leakage or the circulation of 
air. And where leakage occurs, or moisture obtains en- 
trance, they rapidly lose in insulating value. Another 



100 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

precaution that is necessary to consider is the water- 
proofing of the outside walls to prevent moisture from 
getting into the filler or the papers used on the inside. 
All of the heavy work, stone and cement, is coated with 
pitch or some substance to make it impervious to 
moisture. Each set of material inside is also coated. 
In addition, from the inside many precautions must be 
taken to prevent the moisture from collecting on the 
walls in sufficient quantity to wet the insulating ma- 
terials. 

Mechanism of Cold Storage. — There are two well- 
recognized systems for cooling down storage houses: 
(1) Ice refrigeration, and (2) Mechanical refrigeration. 
The cheaper and most common used material is ice, espe- 
cially in the Northern states and the smaller houses. The 
larger storage houses in the big cities or those of the 
Southern states use mechanical refrigeration. It is difficult 
to give any estimate of comparative cost because of the 
wide variation in conditions, labor, cost of material, etc. 
As a general rule, for small or local cold storage houses 
ice is considered the cheaper, especially in the Northern 
states where ice can be manufactured in the winter at 
a low cost. Farther south it would be necessary to make 
the ice artificially and the cost would be much greater 
than for mechanical refrigeration. 

In the larger cities of the East where public storages 
are common, the mechanical system is used almost ex- 
clusively and by most operators is conceded to be the 
cheapest and the most economical to operate. Storage 
houses, up to 5,000-barrel capacity, will probably be 
cheaper to cool by ice than by mechanical means, and the 
smaller plants operated by cooperative organizations are 



FRUIT STORAGE 101 

for the most part cooled down by the use of natural ice. 

The Use of Ice. — To give the early history of the cold 
storage industry would be simply to recall the trying 
out of a great many different methods of using ice. 
The entire business of cold storage is not over 60 years 
old and hence its evolution has been very rapid. The 
first attempt to cool down fruit or vegetables by means 
of ice, was to place the ice upon the floor of the storage 
room. It was soon discovered that this method would 
not be practicable because of the undue amount of 
moisture in the air resulting from the melting of the 
ice. Later, various ways were tried, such as placing the 
ice at the side or above the room to be cooled allowing 
the air to be first cooled down by flowing over the ice 
and later circulating through the storage room. 

This same principle is still employed in the small re- 
frigerators so commonly used in residences for keeping 
foods. The ice being placed in the top of the refrigerat- 
ing box, the air as it flows over it becomes cool and 
settles to the bottom. The warmed air rising again 
passes over the ice at the opposite side. This method is 
not practical for stored fruit or, in fact, is any method 
applicable where the air is cooled by coming directly 
into contact with the ice and then distributed through 
the storage room; the reasons for the failure of this 
method being due to the fact that the humidity cannot 
be controlled. 

Ice Brine System. — The method used almost exclu- 
sively at the present time is what is known as the "Ice 
Brine System." In this arrangement, the air does not 
come in contact with the ice nor with the fruit; but 
coils of pipes in which liquids circulate are first cooled 




Longitudinal Section 



^V 



^M^zE&z ^j^^ mM2^%^^^m z^^z^E&Emm 




wm^MZMms^M^^m^^z szmmk 



,L«Uir 

"i ICE ROOM 



I 



F-1R5T Floou. Plan 

Fig. 87.— PLAN OF A SMALL COLD STORAGE PLANT 
In this plant the ice-brine system of cooling is used. 



102 



FRUIT STORAGE 103 

down and then by passing through the storage room take 
up the heat given off by the fruit. In such an arrange- 
ment, it is necessary to have two independent coils of 
pipes. The one that comes in contact with the ice and 
in which the cooling down is done is known as the 
primary coil, and the one that circulates through the 
storage room as the secondary coil. 

The principle of this circulation is just the reverse of 
the hot water system for heating buildings. The primary 
coil is the one highest up and as the brine in the circu- 
latory system is cooled down it becomes heavier and 
settles to the bottom. As it circulates through the stor- 
age room it absorbs the heat from the room and expand- 
ing becomes lighter and rises again, until it reaches the 
primary coil. In this way a constant flow of the liquid 
through the pipes keeps the air in the storage room at 
the desired temperature without the bad effect of the 
moisture-ladened air coming into direct contact with 
the fruit itself. In most of these types of storage houses, 
the ice is harvested during the winter and stored in an 
annex to the regular plant. Then from this supply the 
ice is crushed as needed, elevated to the tank enclosing 
the primary coils, and fed in as desired. 

If the natural melting of the ice does not keep the 
temperature sufficiently low, salt is added to hasten the 
melting, the theory of the whole operation being that 
the ice in melting takes up the heat by absorption from 
the primary coil, thus cooling down the brine inside. 
The addition of the salt to the crushed ice only increases 
the rapidity of the melting ; hence, increasing the absorb- 
ing power of heat from the surrounding atmosphere. 
Therefore, the more rapidly the ice melts the more rap- 



104 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

idly is the heat taken up, and a lower temperature can 
be maintained in the storage room. 

The cost of maintaining a low temperature for the 
storage of fruit is difficult to estimate, owing to the vary- 
ing local conditions, but for properly constructed and 
insulated storage houses using the ice-brine system, the 
cost should not exceed $10 per 1,000 cubic feet per 
month. A thousand cubic feet will accommodate one 
carload of produce. 

Cooling Solutions Used. — It is obvious that in such 
a system some liquid would have to be used which would 
not freeze at the ordinary temperature. For this pur- 
pose two different substances have been used. One is 
the common solution of salt brine; the other is a solu- 
tion of calcium chloride in water. Salt solution was 
the one most used in the earlier development of this 
system, but it is now largely superseded by the calcium 
chloride. A saturated solution of salt and water will 
freeze at a temperature of about — 7 degrees F.,=below 
zero, while a similar solution of calcium chloride will 
not crystallize under — 50 degrees F. ; hence the latter is 
better adapted for maintaining a lower temperature. In 
addition to this, the salt very quickly corrodes the pipes 
which need to be replaced every four or five years, while 
with the calcium chloride solution replacing once in ten 
years is sufficient. For determining the proper density of 
the solution a common hydrometer similar to the one used 
in testing lime sulphur solution could be used. For a 
salt brine solution a 25-degree reading on the hydro- 
meter would be about right, while for the calcium chlo- 
ride 20 degrees or a little less could be used. 



FRUIT STORAGE 105 

Mechanical Refrigeration. — Space and time will not 
permit going into this subject in detail, but it seems best 
to give a general idea of how cold storages are oper- 
ated under the mechanical systems. Of these there are 
two general types: the first and older one is known as 
the air compression system. This was originally installed 
on ocean steamships where large quantities of stored 
food products had to be carried. It consisted simply of 
compressing the air under pressure until the heat was re- 
moved and then discharging it direct into the storage 
room. As the air expands, heat is taken up from the 
room, thereby keeping the temperature lowered. 

This method is still in use in some places but has 
largely been discarded because of the high cost of oper- 
ation. The other method, and the one now in most 
common use, is the ammonia compression system. In 
this an ammonia solution is used because it will liquify 
under much lower pressure than air. Large costly ma- 
chinery of special make is required to operate such a 
system. 

Ammonia Compression System 1 . — "The production 
of cold by this system is accomplished by the expansion 
or evaporation of liquid anhydrous ammonia. The sys- 
tem consists of three essential parts, the compressor, 
the condenser, and the expansion coils. 

The Compressor. — "The compressor is a pumping 
engine especially designed to compress the ammonia gas 
and force it through the pipes of the condenser, under a 
pressure, varying according to the temperature of the 
condensing water from 150 to 185 pounds per square 
inch. 

1 Remington Machine Company, Wilmington, Del, 



106 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

The Condenser. — "The condenser is a series of pipes 
through which the ammonia gas is forced by the com- 
pressor, and cooled by a constant supply of cold water. 
The heat acquired during both the expansion and com- 
pression of the ammonia gas is absorbed by the cold water 
surrounding the pipes, and by the combined effect of the 
cooling water and pressure exerted by the compressor, 
the gas becomes liquified, and is then in proper condi- 
tion to do the actual work of refrigeration. 

The Expansion Coils. — "The expansion coils are 
placed either in a brine bath or directly in the room 
to be cooled, and the liquified ammonia gas from the con- 
denser is fed into these coils by a sensitive valve reduc- 
ing the pressure to 5 to 25 pounds per square inch, where 
it rapidly re-expands into a gaseous sta1#, and by so 
doing, absorbs the heat from the surrounding brine or 
air, producing an intense cold. 

"The expansion coils are connected with the suction 
pipes of the compressor, and after the gas has per- 
formed its refrigerating work, it is drawn into the 
cylinder of the compressor and is again driven on its 
round of operation, the same gas being used continu- 
ously. 

Utilizing the Cold. — "The methods, in practice for 
utilizing the cold produced in this way are the brine 
system, and the direct expansion system. 

The Brine System. — "In the brine system a tank is 
used containing a strong solution of brine, which is 
cooled to a low temperature by submerging the ammonia 
expansion coils in the brine or by means of a double 
pipe brine cooler, the chilled brine being circulated 
through a series of pipes placed in the rooms to be cooled 



FRUIT STORAGE 107 

by means of a force pump. For making ice, galvanized 
ice cans filled with fresh water are immersed in the 
brine tank to freeze. 

"The pipe system for brine circulation can be made 
up of standard pipe with open return bends, the prac- 
tice being to use pipes varying in size from 1 to 2 inches 
in diameter. The pipe system should be divided into 
sections containing not more than 400 feet of 1-inch 
pipe or equivalent, provided with valves or cocks and 
connected to the mains, so that each section can be shut 
off independently when desired. 

"The location of the pipes in the cold storage room 
may either be overhead or on the sides of the room, the 
former position being preferable when sufficient height 
of ceiling will permit. When rooms have been con- 
structed for using ice, the pipe system can be conveni- 
ently placed in the ice bunkers overhead. 

"The quantity of pipe required for brine circulation 
in cold storage rooms to produce the desired temperature 
depends on the class of goods to be cooled, the quantity 
cooled each day, the size of the room, the character of 
the insulation, the frequency with which the doors are 
opened, the temperature of the atmosphere outside, etc. 
As these conditions vary in almost every case, no fixed 
rule can be laid down, but it is a good practice to make 
a liberal allowance of pipe surface for the duty required 
when the conditions are known, based on practical ex- 
perience embracing almost every line of work to which 
mechanical refrigeration is applied. 

"The brine used is ordinarily made from common 
salt, about 2% pounds of salt per gallon of water will 
make a brine registering 100 degrees density on a 



108 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

salinometer, 2 and which will not freeze at zero. If a 
temperature below zero is required, chloride of calcium 
brine is used, a mixture of three pounds per gallon 
will not freeze at 8 degrees below zero. 

"In the brine system the large body of chilled brine 
contained in the brine tank and pipe coils is a storage 
for cold, and is a reserve that can be used to maintain 
the temperature desired in the rooms for a considerable 
length of time, by merely operating the brine circulat- 
ing pump. It frequently being only necessary to oper- 
ate the compressor during the day to maintain the tem- 
perature during the entire 24 hours. The ease with 
which the temperature is controlled, and the absence of 
any danger from escaping ammonia in the rooms are the 
principal features that commend this system. 

Direct Expansion System. — "In the direct expansion 
system the ammonia expansion coils are placed directly 
in the rooms to be cooled, the heat being absorbed by 
the evaporation of the ammonia in its passage through 
the pipe coils to the compressor, only one system of 
pipes being required. The expense of the outfit being 
very materially reduced, as compared with the brine 
system, the brine tank, the brine pump and the secondary 
system of pipes for brine circulation being dispensed 
with and a somewhat greater efficiency is obtained. 

"The arrangement of the pipe coils in the cold stor- 
age rooms is the same for direct expansion as for brine 
circulation, but the valves and fittings must all be of 
special construction, and the pipes are put up with the 
greatest care so as to be absolutely tight to avoid the 

2 A salinometer is a hydrometer graduated to show the percentage of 
gait in a solution. 



FRUIT STORAGE 109 

possibility of the escape of ammonia in the cold storage 
rooms. 

' ' Owing to the lower temperature and greater rapidity 
of the circulation of the ammonia gas, only about two- 
thirds the pipe surface is required to produce the same 
effect as is necessary for brine circulation. 

"In the direct expansion system the refrigerating 
effect ceases upon the stoppage of the compressor. In 
small plants where this system is used it is not desired 
to operate the machinery but a portion of each day. 
One or more brine storage tanks can be placed in the 
cold storage room, in which a portion of the expansion 
coils are placed. The brine being cooled to a low tem- 
perature while the machine is in operation, this body 
of cold brine will help maintain the temperature during 
the time the machine is shut down. When brine storage 
tanks are used, they are placed overhead in the room to 
be cooled, when sufficient height permits, and arranged 
so as to create a proper circulation of air. The cost 
of installing a mechanical plant is much greater than for 
an ice system, but after once installed, especially for 
large houses, the operation would be much less. And 
in most places it is considered the most economical sys- 
tem to operate." 

Ventilation. — All fruit storage houses need to be 
constructed with a view to ventilation. This is neces- 
sary: (1) To remove the gases given off by the various 
products stored; (2) To remove the decay organisms 
that occasionally appear in storage rooms; and (3) To 
control, to some extent, the humidity required for the 
best keeping condition of the fruit. In the case of 
small "dug-outs" or storage cellars on the farm, little 



HO MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

attention need be paid to ventilation, because the open- 
ing of the doors and windows to control the tempera- 
ture will give sufficient fresh air for practically all 
purposes. 

In large storage houses ventilation is attended to 
regularly and considerable care must be exercised to 
'get the right kind of air and at the right temperature 
and humidity. For fruit storages, ventilation is pre- 
ferably given at least twice a week. And Certain pre- 
cautions must be taken. First, the temperature of the 
outside air needs to be almost the same as that inside 
of the building. If it is impossible to do this, air is 
■ first introduced into the cooling chamber and the proper 
temperature secured before bringing it into contact with 
the stored fruit. 

Second, the humidity of the air introduced must not 
vary materially from the humidity in the storage room. 
For this purpose, certain tests are made to determine 
moisture content of the air and if care is taken it is 
usually possible to get an atmospheric condition outside 
the storage room which will be about the same as the 
requirements of the humidity inside. Then by rapidly 
introducing the air this moisture content can be main- 
tained. 

Humidity of Cold Storage Houses. — By humidity is 
meant the amount of water vapor in a given space, and 
this is usually calculated by weight in grains per cubic 
foot of air space. In all storage houses, considerable 
attention must necessarily be given to the amount of 
moisture in the atmosphere surrounding the stored 
products. This is especially true in the case of fruit. 
If the humidity runs lower than required, the fruit will 



FRUIT STORAGE HI 

lose weight by evaporation and will also shrivel. On 
the other hand, if there is too mnch moisture the fruit 
will be likely to decay. 

The amount of water vapor that can exist in any 
given space depends entirely upon the temperature. The 
higher the temperature the more moisture in a given 
space. When it reaches its maximum or point of satura- 
tion, it is then deposited on the fruit or packages and on 
the walls of the room aud furnishes ideal conditions for 
the growth and spread of decay organisms. 

At one degree Fahrenheit the saturation point for 
air would be about 0.457 grains to one cubic foot. As 
the temperature rises, the holding capacity increases 
until, at 100 degrees, it will hold as high as 19.77 grains 
to one cubic foot of air space. At a temperature of 31 
or 32 degrees, the point at which most of the fruit is 
held in storage houses, the humidity would be about two 
grains to the cubic foot of air space. 

No very careful figures have ever been worked out 
for the best humidity for the different fruits, but in a 
general way they are carried at the same humidity as 
the percentage of water contained in the fruit. For 
example, apples will run from 80 to 86% water, and 
under such conditions the percentage of moisture in the 
air should be from 80 to 85 in the storage rooms. 

The percent of humidity represents only a relative 
condition. The exact weight of water in a cubic foot of 
air when the humidity is 85% and the temperature 31 
degrees, would be quite different from that for 70 de- 
grees. For calculating the exact quantity of water in 
a given space, a chart put out by the United States 
Weather Bureau should be secured. 



Ill 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



To determine the relative humidity in the storage 
rooms two methods can be employed. The first and most 
common one is the nse of the whorl psychrometer (Fig. 
88). This consists of a wet and dry bulb thermometer 
similar to the ones used in the observation stations of the 
Government. These are arranged so a whirling motion 
can be given them, and then by noting the different 
temperatures between the two bulbs, and referring to a 
table, the amount of moisture can be calculated. Such an 
instrument costs about $5, and has to be used carefully 
and skillfully to give satisfaction. 

The other method is to use a self-recording machine 
known as the hydrograph. The principle of this instru- 




Fig. 88.— SLING OR WHORL PSYCHROMETER 



ment is to make a continuous record on a revolving disk, 
recording during the day the humidity at any given time. 
The principle of the marker is the expansion of horse 
hairs due to the amount of moisture in the air. An 
instrument of this type would cost about $60, and where 
temperatures run below zero would be of no value. 

Controlling Humidity. — It is not always easy to 
control the humidity in storage houses. If it runs too 
high certain absorbents are used to take up the surplus 
moisture. The most common of these are lime and cal- 
cium chloride. This is the same form of calcium chloride 
as is used in the pipes for the ice-brine cooling system. 



FRUIT STORAGE H3 

"Where lime is used it is the freshly burned lime or 
calcium oxide. This is taken into the storage rooms 
and placed around over the floor in small, open re- 
ceptacles. It absorbs moisture from the surrounding 
atmosphere and gradually slakes down, changing to the 
hydrated form of calcium. This must be carefully 
watched or its action will be unsteady and a too radical 
change produced. 

A better way is to use the calcium chloride. A few 
lumps of the raw material are placed on a frame in the 
upper part of the storage room — they absorb the mois- 
ture from the air. Often water will drop from the 
material in which case it can be caught on a drip-board 
in the lower part of the support. "When this material 
has absorbed all the moisture it will, it can by simply 
heating expell the moisture and be used over again. 
While the raw material is much more expensive than 
lime it is enough more efficient to make it well worth 
the extra price. 

On the other hand, if the humidity runs too low, it is 
easy to add moisture by simply setting pails of water 
in the room or by sprinkling it on the floor. On the 
whole, storages that are above the level of the ground 
are more likely to have too little than too much moisture. 

Cost of Cold Storage. — There are several different 
methods in use by cold storage companies for the storage 
of fruit. Most of the eastern companies offer a double 
rate system, one by the month and the other by the 
season. The season storage is, of course, cheaper when 
time is considered than by the month. Most storage 
companies run the season from November 1st to May 
1st. Some of them make a distinction between boxed 



114 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

and barreled goods. The end of the season, in case of 
barrels, is April 1st, while the box goods continue to 
May 1st. 

Some storage companies offer a flat rate for the entire 
season, regardless of whether the fruit is stored for a 
short or long period of time. Occasionally large stor- 
age companies will contract or sub-lease certain space 
to small concerns or for the use of other growers or 
cooperative organizations. "Where such organizations 
need considerable space they can usually secure a more 
satisfactory rate for the individual than where each 
grower has to deal direct with the cold storage company. 

The prices of storage in the eastern cities do not vary 
materially from those of the Central states, while most 
of these are materially cheaper than those of the south- 
ern and warmer parts of the United States. The rates 
of a New England fruit storage company, which follow, 
give an idea of the different prices charged for both 
the month and season: 

RATE OF STORAGE 



Barrels 


of 


App 


es 


Boxes of 

A 


Apples 


Under 300 






Over 300' 


Under 500 


Over 500 ' 


1 month 20 cents 




15 cents 


10 cents 


8 cents 


2 months 30 " 






25 " 


12 " 


10 " 


3 months 35 " 






30 " 


14 " 


11 " 


4 months 40 " 






35 " 


16 " 


13 " 


5 months 45 et 






40 " 


18 " 


14 " 


G months 50 " 






45 " 


20 " 


15 " 



The above rates include insurance to the cost value 
of the apples at the date stored, for the benefit of the 
party for whom the apples are held. 

Also the average prices from several cold storage 
companies in Chicago is added. These vary to some 



60 


cents 


1.00 




75 


1 1 


50 


( c 


35 


I ( 


40 


t ( 


30 


if 


35 


( < 


40 


C I 



FRUIT STORAGE 115 

extent for the different companies, but the following 
will give a fair average for the more important storage 
companies : 

AVERAGE CHARGES IN CHICAGO STORAGE 

Per month Per season 

Eggs, per 30 doz. case 15 cents 

Butter, per 100 lbs 25 

Cheese, per 100 lbs 20 

Apples, per barrel 15 

Apples, per box 10 

Lemons, per box 10 

Oranges, per box 8 

Dried fruit, per 100 lbs 8 

Dried nuts, per 100 lbs 10 

Advantages of Public Storage. — There are certain 
well-understood and well-recognized advantages to be 
gained from the storing of fruit. Some of these are of 
primary importance to the producer, while others are 
more or less in the interest of the consumer. These may 
be listed as follows: (1) To prevent the fluctuation of 
prices by offering too much fruit at any one time. (2) 
To give a large variety for the consumer by lengthening 
the keeping season of any one kind of fruit. (3) To 
keep the fruit for a much longer period, thus giving 
an opportunity to lengthen or even up the supply. (4) 
To permit the use of more perishable kinds of fruit. 
These reasons are so obvious, and have been commented 
upon so much that little need be added. 

It is worth while to emphasize the fact that people 
living in the large cities of the Eastern and Central states 
would have a very meager supply of fresh fruit during 
the greater part of the year were it not for the public 



116 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

cold storage plant. Practically all the fruit in transi- 
tion from the warmer states must be kept in storage. 
All the meat, eggs, and other food products which must 
be shipped long distances could not possibly be supplied 
fresh were it not for the advantages of cold storage. 
In fact, in most every case the consumer in large cities 
uses daily either meat or fruit products which have 
been kept fresh in cold storage plant. 

The volume of business done would run far into the 
millions of dollars per annum and while creating a good 
income from the money invested in storage plants they 
also add largely to the comfort of the consumer who is 
forced to make the larger cities his home. 

Disadvantages of Cold Storage. — There are also cer- 
tain disadvantages in the use of cold storage and these 
refer more particularly to the producer or to the person 
who wishes to store the fruit. First, it is not always easy 
to foresee conditions and if the producer stores his 
fruit he must do so at his own risk, hoping that at the 
proper time the market will rise sufficiently so as to move 
his goods at a fair profit. The individual producer is 
at a decided disadvantage in this case because he is not 
in a position to make a study of the market require- 
ments. On the other hand, operators of the fruit stor- 
age houses are themselves in the center of the consuming 
district and can accurately forecast what may be ex- 
pected. In some cases, they are willing to advise the 
storer of these conditions, but this can hardly be ex- 
pected as a general rule. 

The second disadvantage is that the producer has 
little or no protection. The fruit is often shipped 
across two or three states, and placed in storage. After 



FRUIT STORAGE 117 

it leaves the home town the grower seldom sees it again 
and must rely upon the word of the storage people as 
to its condition. Much dissatisfaction and complaint 
has been heaped upon the storage companies for taking 
undue liberties with the goods stored by producers. In 
such cases cooperative organizations, by being able to 
have an agent at the centers of consumption, can better 
protect the interests of the producers. 

In the third place, the storage of fruit often causes 
an extension of credit. This in itself is not a great 
disadvantage, yet ultimately it cannot but react against 
the producer. For example, the grower places a large 
quantity of fruit in storage; he then asks the storage 
company to advance a certain percent of the value. 
This the companies are usually willing to do, but in turn 
charge an interest for the money advanced. 

Cold storage companies are willing to advance about 
half the sum to which the prospective sales will amount, 
charging from 6 to 8% interest until such time as the 
sales can be made. This enables the producer to pay 
for his help in preparing the fruit for market, to carry 
on his own business interests and live until the fruit is 
sold. On the other hand, he is not only paying storage 
for the keeping of the fruit but is also paying interest 
on the advance of money which rightly belongs to him. 

"While this is considered legitimate business it is al- 
ways to the disadvantage of the producer in favor of 
the storage company. Another disadvantage is that the 
storage companies are often asked to act as salesmen, 
and this results not infrequently in certain questionable 
speculations on the part of the storage houses. The 
manager of a storage house may receive a bid on a part 



113 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

of some particular good lot of fruit stored. He im- 
mediately wires to the owner offering him a somewhat 
lower price for the immediate sale of the fruit. The 
owner not knowing the exact market conditions, and as 
the price seems good, accepts the offer and is "buncoed" 
out of his extra legitimate profit. 



CHAPTER VI 



THE EFFECTS OF STORAGE ON FRUIT 



Keeping Qualities. — There are several well-recognizecl 
conditions associated with the keeping quality of fruit 
in cold storage. Other than the storing of first-class 
fruit, free from blemishes, etc., probably the maturity 
of the fruit is of the most importance. Various experi- 
ments have been conducted along this line and the re- 
sults show plainly that well-matured specimens keep 
much better in storage than where they are not fully 
grown or developed. Apples intended for storage are 
in better condition if allowed to remain on the trees 
as long as possible, in order 
to insure good maturity for 
storage. 

It has also been found that 
the color of the fruit has con- 
siderable to do with its duration 
in cold storage. There is ap- 
parently no difference between 
the keeping qualities of green 
varieties and of the highly col- 
ored varieties so long as the same 
degree of maturity is maintained. 
On the other hand, fruit low in 
color does not keep as well under 
normal storage conditions. Usu- 
119 




Fig. 89. 

Highly colored, well-graded 
fruit in closed packages keeps 
best in storage. 



120 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



ally, fruit that is not well colored is grown in the shade, or 
some quality of soil or fertilizer is lacking to develop 
the color, and that usually means a lack of maturity. 
Therefore, in selecting for good keeping qualities the 
highly colored fruits or the well developed color of any 
variety seems to be important. 

Fruit that is overgrown or unduly large for the 




Fig. 90.— A POOR WAY TO STORE FRUIT EVEN FOR A 
SHORT TIME 

More handling is required, and more shrinkage and decay results. 



variety is not good for long keeping in cold storage. It 
is due, probably, to the fact that the first fruit on 
young trees do not develop as strong a cellular struc- 
ture as fruit from older trees, and this is also ap- 
parently true of overgrown or over-sized fruit. Thus, 
for storage as well as for sale, the average or medium- 



THE EFFECTS OF STORAGE ON FRUITS 121 

sized fruit is selected in preference to the unusually 
large. 

Various cultural methods in orchard management have 
their influence on the keeping qualities of fruit. A 
number of experiments relative to the influence of sod 
culture over clean culture for keeping qualities in stor- 
age have been conducted and the consensus of opinions 
indicate that there is no influence in favor of either 
method. It was originally supposed that apples from 
sod culture would keep better in storage. This opinion 
resulted from the fact that apples grown on sod land 
usually mature a little ahead of. those where clean cul- 
ture is given. Both being picked and stored at the 
same time, the fruit from the sod would go into storage 
in more matured condition than where the clean culture 
was given. 

Later experiments showed that equally matured fruit 
from either cultures keep equally good. On the other 
hand, the types of soil where fruit is grown has a marked 
influence on the keeping qualities. Fruits that keep 
best are grown on the lighter sandy soils. They develop 
a higher color, and also mature in better shape, thus 
keeping much better in storage. Fruits from heavy 
soils, which are of a clayey type, are not so highly col- 
ored ordinarily and deteriorate in storage much more 
quickly than those from the other kinds of soil. 

The fertilizing constituents used also have a marked 
influence upon the keeping of fruit in storage. Soils 
that are too rich in nitrogen produce fruit with poor 
keeping qualities. Soils that are deficient in potash or 
phosphorus, especially the latter, do not produce good 
keeping fruit, The reasons for this is undoubtedly due 



122 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

to the influence of the fertilizing constituents. Nitrogen 
in abundance tends to produce overgrowth of vegetation 
and under-coloring of the fruit, while phosphorus and 
potassium develop the flavors and aroma characteristics 
of the fruit and the high colors that are necessary for 
good keeping. This is one reason why old, neglected 
orchards or those badly run down produce fruit that 











Fig. 91.— FRUIT STORED IN OPEN BOXES 
This is not desirable if it must be repacked before selling. 

keeps poorly and is lacking in the right flavor and 
texture. 

The temperature of the fruit at packing time influ- 
ences its keeping in storage. Fruit that is allowed to 
stand at a high temperature for two or three weeks will 
advance in the ripening stages much more rapidly after 
being put in storage than when transferred at once 
from the trees to the cold storage house. All fruits in- 
tended for storage are preferably graded and packed 



THE EFFECTS OF STORAGE ON FRUITS 123 

as soon as picked, and immediately forwarded to the 
storage house. Any delay in getting the temperature 
down to the desired point will have a tendency to shorten 
the time which the fruit will keep. 

Fruit wrappers have a very marked influence on 
stored fruit. They prevent, to a certain extent, the 
spread of decay organisms, they help to control the 
humidity by keeping the moisture from evaporating so 
rapidly and also prevent the rapid rise of temperature 
when fruit is taken out of the storage. All these con- 
siderations are of importance and the producer who 
wishes to store his fruit for the longest possible time 
makes use of them. Where the producer is storing fruit 
for only a short time, he need not pay so much atten- 
tion to these conditions. 

Freezing Effects. — No doubt almost every orchardist 
has found fruit that has apparently been frozen and 
then later thawed out without material injury. This 
is riot only true in the case of fruits but also of vege- 
tables and other products as well. This depends not 
so much upon the temperature to which the fruit is sub- 
jected as upon the way in which it is thawed out. In 
cases where the temperature does not run too low, if the 
thawing out is conducted carefully and not too rapidly, 
the fruit will again take its normal condition and ap- 
parently be as good as before. The effect of freezing 
on fruit is not very well understood but it is supposed 
that in the freezing process the cell sap is disorganized 
and a part of it forced out between the cells or into the 
inter-cellular spaces. Where thawing is gradual this 
sap goes back into the cells and assumes its normal con- 
dition, but where thawing is rapid the moisture evapo- 



124 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

rates from the outside and the cells collapse, and the 
structure rapidly deteriorates. 

The exact temperature at which fruit may be sub- 
jected without injury is still an open question. Experi- 
ments conducted at the Iowa station a few years ago 
brought out the fact that a temperature of 19 to 20 




Fig. 92.— BARRELED APPLES IN STORAGE 
Where barrels are headed up they are best stored on their sides. 

degrees could be maintained for some time and the fruit 
thawed out gradually with no particular injury either 
to the flavor or keeping qualities. On the other hand, 
a drop to 10 degrees almost invariably spoiled the fruit 
no matter how carefully the thawing process was con- 
ducted. Apparently, then, somewhere between 20 and 10 



THE EFFECTS OF STORAGE ON FRUITS 125 

degrees is a point at which most fruits can stand with- 
out being injured by the freezing process. 

This same condition can often be noted in the orchards 
of the Northern states before the fruit is harvested. A 
drop in temperature of three to four degrees below freez- 
ing, sometimes accompanied by snow, will freeze the fruit 
almost through. If the sun comes out brightly the fol- 
lowing day, the fruit is sure to be spoiled. On the other 
hand, if conditions are favorable, the skies cloudy and 
the temperature rises gradually, the fruit will often 
regain the normal condition without any bad effects. 

Fruit Scald. — This is a trouble which often appears 
in storage and for which no very satisfactory explana- 
tion has been given. It is a physiological trouble, as no 
decay organisms have ever been found in connection 
with it. It appears mostly on the surface of the skin, 
seldom penetrating the flesh. It gives the fruit the ap- 
pearance of a half-baked apple ; the skin turning dark 
brown in spots. The affected area may be small or ex- 
tending over a considerable part of the fruit. While it 
does not materially injure the value of the fruit, it does 
detract considerably from the appearance, and fruit 
held in storage for the fancy trade or for dessert pur- 
poses is discounted if scald appears. 

The cause is purely physiological and seems to be as- 
sociated only with the lower temperatures in storage 
houses. It seldom or never develops in common cellars 
on the farm where the temperature does not run lower 
than 35 or 40 degrees. It is supposed to be due to an 
excess of carbon dioxide given off by the fruit in the 
ripening. There is no very good way of preventing the 
appearance of scald except in the careful selection of 



126 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



fruit before storing. There is little difference in the 
green and the red varieties; but apparently there is 
considerable difference between the highly colored and 
poorly colored specimens of the same variety. Most of 
the trouble appears upon the green or under colored 
parts of the fruit. 

There is also a difference between the fruit of differ- 
ent years or seasons. Some years not over 1 or 2% of 
scald will appear, while in some seasons as high as 20 
or 25 % will be affected by this trouble. This is a trouble 
that is worthy of more serious consideration on the part 
of various state experiment stations. 

Shrinkage in Storage. — It has been found impossible 
to prevent fruit from shrinking while in storage. This 
is not of the greatest importance, still it is necessary to 
consider it. In a good many retail markets it is the 
habit of dealers to sell fruit by weight rather than by 




Fig. 93.— A CONVENIENT RACK FOR STORING SMALL 
QUANTITIES OF FRUIT 



THE EFFECTS OF STORAGE ON FRUITS 127 

bulk, and in such cases the amount of evaporation may 
be calculated. Shrinkage is due altogether to the evap- 
oration of moisture from the fruit. "Where this is great 
the fruit becomes shrivelled and gives a dry, unattractive 
appearance when offered for sale. Fruit that has an oily 
skin does not lose moisture by evaporation so readily as 
the russeted or dry-skinned fruits. 

The amount of evaporation varies greatly with the 
different varieties and at the different degrees of tem- 
perature at which it is stored. Under normal conditions 
it will be necessary to make an average allowance of 5 
to 10% lost weight for the storage season. Buyers usu- 
ally estimate from 10 to 15% to be on the safe side and 
allow for the maximum shrinkage. The only way to 
prevent undue shrinkage is to pay more strict attention 
to the humidity of the air in the storage room. Mention 
has been made of the amount of humidity necessary for 
the best keeping of the fruit. Where the moisture con- 
tent of the air or humidity is below 80% a large amount 
of shrinkage may be expected. On the other hand, even 
though maintained at the best known standard, 5 to 10% 
must still be allowed where fruit is stored for a full 
season. 

Decay in Storage. — There are a number of different 
kinds of rots caused by various forms of fungus growth 
which are always associated with the storage of fruit. 
These rots are usually designated by their peculiar ef- 
fect upon the fruit itself. For example, the most com- 
mon are the soft rot, the black rot, the brown rot, the 
bitter rot and the disease commonly known as the black 
spot or scab, all taking their name from their character- 
istic appearance. These are all fungus troubles and, 



12* 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



at the normal temperature after the fruit is once in- 
fected, develop very rapidly. As the life of the fruit 
is prolonged in storage the effects of these organisms 
become more noticeable than in the earlier part of the 
storage season. All are affected materially by the tern- 




Fig. 94.— APPLE SCAB APPEARING IN STORAGE 



perature at which the fruit is stored, the lower the 
temperature the less active is the growth. 

It is well to pay particular attention to the grading to 
see that no affected fruit is put in storage. Practically 
all of these decay organisms are of such a nature that 
it is impossible for them to gain entrance to a sound 
healthy skin and, hence, if there are no punctures or 
bruises that will break the skin it is not easy for decay 
to spread. However, a very fine puncture, even as 




Fig. 95.— BROWN ROT 



Fig. 98.— SOFT ROT OR BLUE 
MOLD 




Fig. 97.— BLACK ROT 



Fig. 100.— FRUIT SPOT 



129 



130 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

fine as a needle point will give ample opportunity 
for infection from these various decay organisms. 

As the temperature of the fruit in storage is lowered 
the activities of the fungi are lessened, until at a point- 
about 31 or 32 degrees growth is almost stopped. It is 
not possible to kill or eradicate any of the rots, so far 
as known, by lowering the temperature beyond 31 de- 
grees. As soon as the fruit is removed from storage 




Fig. 101.— PINK ROT FOLLOWING APPLE SCAB 

the temperature rises and the decay fungi immediately 
become active and work much more rapidly than they 
would previous to storage. 

Various precautions need to be taken to prevent the 
spread of decay in storage houses: (1) The temperature 
should not be changed more than one degree in 24 
hours. (2) The ventilation should be sufficient to re- 
move any of the spores that might be scattered through 
the air. (3) Where the fruit is wrapped, the packages 
sealed up and not rehandled until removed from the 



THE EFFECTS OF STORAGE OX FRUITS 131 

storage house, there is much less damage resulting from 
the effects of these decay organisms. 

Paper wrappers are of especial importance because of 
their insulating value against the spread of the fungus 
growth. It takes from two to six weeks for the fungus 
to go through its complete life cycle. Then as the spores 
are given out they float through the air and finally 
lodge upon new or uninfected places. "Where the wraps 
are put on in good shape it tends to keep the infected 
fruit separated from the others and prevent the spread 
of the decay organisms. 

Physiology of Fruit. — While there is still a great op- 
portunity for the study of the physiology of fruits, a 
few things that are now known may be noted in connec- 
tion with the keeping of fruit in storage. Certain sub- 
stances are always present in the chemical make-up of 
fruits and more or less definite changes are known to 
take place. By far the greatest percentage of all fruit 
is water, running as high as 90% in fruit like straw- 
berries and from 75 to 85% in apples, pears, etc., and 
down as low as 60 or 65% in some of the stone fruit 
which have a large seed or pit. Most fruits contain 
various carbohydrates such as the fruit sugars, cellulose 
and pectin bodies, and there are also certain acids or 
alkaloids present in almost every kind. 

The apple contains malic acid which gives it its char- 
acteristic flavor and aroma, while the citrus fruits have 
the citric acid, etc. These are purely vegetable acids 
and are difficult to classify from the chemical stand- 
point. Most fruits contain a certain amount of tannin, 
especially pome fruits. This, when exposed to the air, 
is changed into tannic acid by oxidization and is re- 



132 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

sponsible for the rapid change in color from white to 
brown in the cut surface of the fresh fruit; also largely 
responsible for the bitter principle contained in fruits be- 
fore they are ripe. Most fruits in the ripening process 
pass through certain chemical and respiratory changes. 

Changes in Ripening. — When a fruit is taken from 
the tree it is not a dead or inert substance, but certain 
chemical changes continue to take place until the fruit 
is finally used or decayed. This process is usually spoken 
of as the ' ' ripening up " of the fruit. The most notice- 
able change is the gradual transformation of the starch 
content to sugar. In this way the fruit becomes sweeter 
and certain aromas or flavors are intensified. The rea- 
son for this is due to the fact that abundance of starch 
is associated with firm, hard fruit. At high temperatures 
the starch changes rapidly to sugar and the low temper- 
atures do not have the same effect upon the cellulose, 
hence they soften much more slowly. 

Changes in Storage. — The greatest influence of cold 
storage upon the chemical changes in fruit is to retard 
them. The fruit kept at a temperature as low as pos- 
sible without freezing will lengthen materially the life 
of the fruit by retarding certain chemical changes. The 
rate of transition of starch to sugar will be much slower 
in the cold storage house. The time of cooling down 
also has a marked influence on fruit. That which is 
cooled down as quickly as possible after being removed 
from the trees will keep much better in storage than 
where from two to four weeks elapse before it is placed 
in the cooling room. With such fruits as plums or apri- 
cots it is absolutely necessary that this cooling be done 
at the earliest possible opportunity after picking. 



THE EFFECTS OF STORAGE ON FRUITS 133 

The size of the package also has considerable to do 
with the rapidity with which the fruit is cooled down, 
and hence the attended chemical changes. Large pack- 
ages like barrels of apples require from 24 to 72 hours 
for the inside of the package to reach the same degree 
as the outside. Where the fruit is wrapped in paper, 
the insulating power of the paper tends to retard the 
cooling down process. The smaller packages, therefore, 
are usually preferred by fruit storage men and by fruit 
growers for the best results in the keeping qualities of 
fruit in cold storage. 

The different varieties and kinds of fruit are affected 
in widely different ways in cold storage. In such fruits 
as lemons the desirability of the fruit rests largely upon 
the quantities of citric acid they contain. It is imper- 
ative that no very great quantity of the starch be con- 
verted into sugar. With fruits like bananas, pineapples, 
etc., the quality is improved materially by the increase 
of the sugar content and, therefore, they are stored 
in a higher temperature. Thus, every effort is put forth 
to develop as large a sugar content as possible. With 
apples, certain varieties keep well in storage while 
others go down very quickly. It is needless to say that 
it is seldom, if ever, desirable to cold store fall or sum- 
mer varieties of apples. Those of standard grade and 
quality are in all cases the most desirable. 



CHAPTER VII 

TRANSPORTATION 

Freight Cars. — For the shipping of produce to large 
markets there are four types of freight cars in use. 
They are known as the common freight, the air ventilated 
cars, the heated cars, and the refrigerator cars. The 
common freight are the cars in which ordinary mer- 
chandise is shipped and are used in a great many cases 
for fruit for short hauls, but only rarely are they used 
for fruit when shipped long distances. While in some 
cases they give satisfactory results, their use on the whole 
should be discouraged in favor of some of the other types. 
In the Northern states the common freight is used to 
some extent for the less perishable fruits, but more par- 
ticularly the air ventilated cars are used where it is not 
necessary to refrigerate the produce in transit. 

The air ventilated cars are similar to the common 
freight except that they are provided with means for 
ventilation so as to give the fruit pure air while in 
transit. Also most of the refrigerator cars are arranged 
for ventilation when ice is not used. Nearly all of the 
ventilated cars work only while in motion, having small 
openings in the front, near the end, so when the car is 
moving the air is drawn through and thus ventilation is 
provided In the colder states of the North, where fruit 
is shipped during the winter, such as apples from the 

134 



TRANSPORTATION 135 

Northeast or Northwest, some arrangement is necessary 
whereby cars can be kept warm or the contents kept 
from freezing while in transit. 

Various types of so-called heated cars are used for 
the different kinds of produce. These are more commonly 
used for potatoes and other vegetables rather than for 
fruit. The last and most important kind is the refrig- 
erator car which is especially constructed for the ship- 
ment of fruit. All of the fruit brought to the Eastern 
markets from the South and from the far West is 
handled in these refrigerator cars. They are specially 
designed and insulated against the heat from outside 
and are also provided with bunkers on each end to hold 
ice to keep the fruit cold while in transit. Most all of 
the trunk line railroads own a large number of these 
refrigerator cars, but there are also some private line 
companies which have their own cars and are hauled by 
the railroads on certain working agreements, usually 
based on tonnage. 

Express Companies.— All shippers of the more perish- 
able fruits must deal with express companies because of 
the necessary haste in delivery of goods to market. 
Nearly all the express companies handle small fruit on 
a large scale. Express rates charged by the various 
transportation companies are usually very much higher 
than the ordinary freight rate. On the other hand, they 
travel on a much faster schedule and, hence, can deliver 
the goods more quickly. It is seldom possible to ship 
perishable fruits even for short distances by local freight, 
hence producers located no farther away than 24 or 48 
hours' journey must make use of these express com- 
panies to deliver the fruit. 



136 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

Most companies make special rates for the handling 
of perishable farm produce, and where delivered or con- 
signed to the commission house the express rate is about 
half what it would be where delivered to an individual 
For example, southern New Jersey has a special express 
rate, to Philadelphia and New York, of about 35 cents a 
bushel crate of strawberries when consigned to a com- 
mission house, but when consigned to an individual the 
regular charge would be about twice that amount. The 
express companies explain this discrepancy in that the 
private crate must be delivered at the expense of the 
transportation company, while those consigned to the 
commission house are looked after by the commission 
man. 

Where long hauls are made, necessitating the use of 
refrigerator cars, fruit can only be handled in carload 
lots. The cost of icing and handling such cars would 
be prohibitive if carrying less than the full capacity of 
the car. In most places where fruit is shipped in large 
quantities special rates may be had, known as "com- 
modity rates," which means a special railroad rate for 
certain commodities shipped between certain definite 
points. And such commodity rates are from 25 to 50% 
less than the regular rates under ordinary conditions. 
To get such a rate where none has been previously 
granted, it would be necessary for the individual or 
organization to petition the railroads or the railroad 
commission of the state, setting forth points between 
which the rate is desired and the commodity to be 
shipped. 

Where such shipments are in more than one state, it 
will be necessary to petition the Interstate Railway Com- 



TRANSPORTATION 137 

mission. Such requests are usually considered by the 
companies and, if they deem them of sufficient impor- 
tance, are granted, but if not it will be necessary for the 
state railroad commission to hold a hearing at which 
the parties wishing the reduction must appear and give 
testimony in favor of such rates. It is needless to say 
that individual growers who can do this are very few, 
and only organizations handling a large amount of fruit 
can make satisfactory arrangements with the transporta- 
tion companies. 

Private Car Lines. — There .are a number of express 
companies which handle food and fruit products, usually 
designated as private car lines. These are independent 
companies owning refrigerator cars which are hauled 
by the railroads on the mileage basis. In addition, most 
of the express companies have refrigerator cars in con- 
nection with their regular express trade. Some private 
car lines have from 1,000 to 50,000 refrigerator cars, 
all in addition to those owned and operated by the reg- 
ular railroad companies. It has been estimated that 
100,000 such cars are in constant use in the United 
States. Shipping fruit in refrigerator cars has devel- 
oped so greatly during the past 8 or 10 years that they 
are now considered indispensable to the general public. 

Much criticism has been heaped upon these companies 
because of rebates accepted and given in connection with 
the transporting of perishable goods. Time was not 
long since, when it was almost impossible for an indi- 
vidual to ship perishable goods without patronizing some 
of these private car lines but, in later years, the super- 
visory power of the Interstate Railway Commission has 
been sufficiently strong to regulate the business. The 



138 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 




efficiency and general helpfulness to the producer has 
increased from year to year. 

Parcel Post. — Another means of transporting perish- 
able goods, which is now only in its infancy, is the use 
of the parcel post. It is not possible to predict at pres- 
ent just how far this service will develop, yet most 
shippers are looking forward to the time when a real 

efficient parcel post 
can be put in opera- 
tion. There are many 
reasons, both pro and 
con, regarding the use 
of the parcel post for 
perishable goods, and 
these are far too num- 
erous to be given 
lengthy consideration 
here. The greatest 
value of this plan lies in the shipping of produce 
from the grower to the consumer. This will cause 
the elimination of all middlemen and represent theoreti- 
cally the ideal condition for marketing farm produce. 
Its use will be attended by many difficulties until the 
consuming public has been educated to appreciate its 
value and until then it will probably not be in ex- 
tensive use. 

In addition to this, the present rate offered by parcel 
post is not materially less than that offered by express 
companies and for fruits is still too high to be of service 
to the individual producer. When the consumers in the 
large cities can arrange in advance to use the mail 
to order produce direct from the farms, then will 



Fig. 102.— PASTEBOARD PACKAGES 
For sending produce by mail. 



TRANSPORTATION 



139 



parcel post become of sufficient importance to be of great 
value in distributing farm produce. For the past 15 
years efforts have been made to produce a workable 
parcel post system, and have been defeated in almost 
every case up to 1912 when a bill was passed by Con- 
gress inaugurating its use on a limited scale. It has 




Fig. 103.— APPLES BY PARCEL POST 

since been extended, until at the present time it is pos- 
sible to ship in quantities as large as 50 pounds in the 
first and second zones through the medium of the parcel 
post. 

Pre-cooling of Fruit. — All of the more perishable 
fruits that are usually shipped in refrigerator cars must 
be kept cool by the use of ice while in transit. Espe- 
cially is this true of the fruits shipped from the South- 
ern or Western states to the Eastern markets. On the 



140 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



long hauls it was found that the quantity of ice required 
and the extra tonnage on account of it, added so greatly 
to the expense that various methods were introduced to 
try to cool down the fruit before being shipped. All 
of this experimenting resulted finally in the inaugura- 
tion of several pre-cooling systems which are now ex- 
tensively used both in the South and the West. 




Fig. 104.— A SPECIAL CARTON 

This carton holds 100 apples and can be sent by Parcel Post in the 

first two zones. 



At present there are two well-defined systems for pre- 
cooling fruit ; one known as the car system and the other 
as the box system. In the former, the fruit is loaded 
into the refrigerator cars at the warehouse and run di- 
rect to the pre-cooling plant and there cooled down in 
the cars. In the other system, the boxes are run through 
a cool room and the temperature run down before load- 
ing. Both methods have given satisfaction, but appar- 
ently the box system is gaining in importance over the 
other method. The reason for this lies mostly in two 



TRANSPORTATION 



141 



facts: (1) The box system is more cheaply installed 
and operated, and (2) the fruit is more easily cooled 
down before loading in the cars than it is afterwards. 
The car system of pre-cooling is so expensive that it 
can only be installed in centers of production or at the 
best shipping points. In such cases it is necessary to 
load the fruit into the cars during the day or evening 




Fig. 105.— PACKAGES OF FRUIT READY FOR THE POSTMAN 



from each of the warehouses and then run direct to the 
different cooling plants. Here they are cooled down 
during the night, and in the morning sent off on their 
journey. This means that from 5 to 24 hours must elapse 
from the time the fruit is placed in the cars until it is 
properly cooled down for shipment. In the hot climates 
of the South and the West this has been found to be too 
long a time. 

The principle on which these pre-cooling plants oper- 



142 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



ate is similar to the common cold storage plant. In the 
warmer parts of the United States, artificial ice would 
have to be used where cars are iced for transit, so these 
pre-cooling plants are usually equipped with machinery 
for making artificial ice as well as for the cooling of the 
air to be run through the cars of loaded fruit. The 




Fig. 106.— DELIVERING BARRELED APPLES TO THE RAILROAD 



expense of such plants for the car system runs as high 
as $500,000 to $800,000. Most of them have thus far 
been operated by the railroad companies, while those of 
the box system are mostly operated by the various fruit 
growers' exchanges. Owing to the great cost of the 
larger plants they must draw business from 25 to 50 
miles from the surrounding fruit sections, while the 
smaller plants are equipped in connection with the ware^ 



TRANSPORTATION 143 

houses of each of the local exchanges and draw fruit 
from the area from which the exchange operates. 

The fruit is cooled down as soon as it is brought in 
from the orchard. After being sufficiently cooled, it is 
stored in a cold room or loaded directly into the cars and 
sent off. Before the inauguration of the pre-cooling 
plants, cars of fruit moving north or east during the 
hot season would need to be iced every four days. In 
some cases, every three days. This would mean a stop 
of from two to six hours at certain icing stations along 
the road to refill the bunkers of the cars. As the rail- 
road companies always charge extra for this it adds very 
materially to cost of transportation of the fruit. 

Pre-cooling plants, for the most part, cool the fruit 
down sufficiently before starting so that the initial icing 
is sufficient to carry the fruit across the continent, thus 
making a saving both in expense and time in transit. 
In some cases pre-cooling is working so satisfactorily that 
fruit can be shipped across the continent without any 
ice in the bunkers. 

In the car system for pre-cooling fruit sufficient cool- 
ing space and track surface is necessary to accommodate 
a full train of fruit consisting of about 32 cars. From 
four to five hours are required to cool down the fruit 
in these cars to a temperature of 45 degrees which is 
considered desirable before starting them on their long 
journey. The method of producing the cold is similar 
to the ammonia pressure system referred to in connec- 
tion with the large public cold storage houses. One of 
the largest of these plants in California contains over 
35 miles of pipe coils through which brine with a tem- 
perature below zero is circulated. The air surrounding 



144 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

the pipe coils is cooled down and then conducted through 
a 6-foot tunnel to the outlet for each refrigerator car. 
The air is driven by means of a rotary fan. 

The cold air is conducted into the cars by means of 
flexible couplings, one of which is inserted in the vent 
opening of either end of the car. At first the warm air 
is drawn off and discharged outside and then as the 
car is cooled down the heated air, which is drawn from 
the fruit in the cars, is conducted back into the plant 
where it is again cooled down by coming in contact with 
the brine coils. Cold air is forced through the cars at 
the rate of about 8,000 cubic feet a minute, reaching a 
velocity of from 30 to 40 miles an hour. It is first run 
in one direction for a little while and then reversed, so 
that all parts of the car will be equally cooled down. 

In the systems where the boxes are cooled before load- 
ing, the fruit is conducted through a cool room by means 
of an endless belt. This is so timed that, as each pack- 
age makes one complete revolution, the fruit is cooled 
to the desired temperature. Thus, by varying the speed 
of the carrier, to suit the various sizes and kinds of fruit 
only one handling is necessary. 

Moving the Fruit. — In carrying food products to the 
larger cities which constitute the main markets of the 
United States, the bulk of the fruit must be shipped long 
distances. In most cases it must cross two or three states 
and often go across the entire continent. There is ap- 
proximately half the population of the United States 
within a radius of 500 miles of the city of New York. 
Hence, the bulk of the fruit products must be sold 
within that radius. The transportation problems then 
enter largely into the business of moving fruit long 



TRANSPORTATION 145 

distances to the center of consumption. Where fruit is 
shipped in carlots, and especially from the South and 
the West where they run solid trains of fruit, the rail- 
roads try to carry these upon passenger schedule or 
what is commonly known as fast freight. 

For the smaller shipments where fruit is carried, not 
by the carload but in connection with the regular ex- 
press shipments, they nearly always go in the express 
cars which run in connection with passenger trains ; but 
where whole trains of fruit are moved, they run on an 
independent schedule which is somewhat slower than the 
ordinary passenger time. As the quantity of fruit 
shipped varies considerably from season to season and 
from month to month, the railroads have to provide cars 
a long time ahead and arrange traffic schedules to handle 
the more perishable goods. They have to provide an 
enormous number of refrigerator cars, also establish 
icing stations along the route, and must have large 
terminal facilities for switching accommodations at the 
centers of consumption. Then they must arrange a 
schedule for moving the fruit which will allow it to go 
through on fast time and have no more delay than is 
absolutely necessary while in transit. 

From the Pacific to the Atlantic coast, it requires 
from 12 to 14 days to move a car of fruit. Under the 
pre-cooling system this has been cut down two or three 
days, and now the railroads are promising to make the 
entire journey in as short a time as 10 days. Due largely 
to the stimulating influence of competing lines, this will 
very materially affect the quantity and the quality of the 
fruit shipped. It has been the habit in the South and 
the West to pick the fruit far too green, in order to 



146 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

allow for the extra time in shipment, and such fruit 
as grapes and peaches will never properly ripen when 
picked too early. 

Where the shipments can reach the markets in a short 
time, and where better cold storage can be arranged for 
in transit, the fruit does not need to be picked until 
it is more mature. Hence, the quality of the grapes 
and peaches that come from the West have gradually 
improved from year to year, until now it is possible to 
get the more perishable fruits from all parts of the 
country in as good condition as where grown. This is 
also true of some of the more perishable vegetables from 
the market sections of the south. 

Ocean freight is a question which, at the present time, 
is causing considerable discussion among the various 
fruit shipping organizations. As production increases, 
outlets must be secured in some of the foreign countries. 
Until recently, Europe has taken a large proportion of 
our exports. Now new outlets are sought in other coun- 
tries such as South America, Australia, South Africa and 
the Empires of Japan and China. As time goes on, the 
ocean freight traffic will demand a larger and more care- 
ful supervision in full consideration of the fruit in- 
dustry. 

The tendency of the past year or two has been to 
increase the freight all along the line, both for con- 
tinental and oceanic traffic. The increase of the foreign 
or export trade for the more perishable fruits will mean a 
corresponding increase in the facilities for handling this 
fruit in ocean traffic. Better cold storage facilities on the 
boats must be provided, also better means of loading and 
unloading the fruit so as to avoid injury in the handling. 



TRANSPORTATION 147 

Some of the larger companies have gone so far as to 
have their own boats and have worked ont a very fine 
system of handling fruit while in transit. The distance 
or length of time fruit can be shipped will depend, of 
course, upon the conditions of climate and the kind and 
variety of the fruit handled. 

In a general way, however, the duration of fruit after 
picking, without some means of cold storage, would be 
about as follows for the different types of fruits : Straw- 
berry, 48 to 72 hours ; raspberry, 48 to 72 hours ; black- 
berry, 72 to 86 hours; peach, 4 to 8 days; plum, 
5 to 10 days; grape, 15 to 30 days; pear, 36 to 60 days; 
apple, 60 to 90 days ; and citrus fruits, 30 to 60 days. 

By means of cold storage, together with the proper 
facilities for handling the fruit, these periods of time 
can be nearly doubled. Where plums will keep from 5 
to 10 days in ordinary storage without ice, under the 
best conditions they may be kept in good shape from 10 
to 20 days. 

Loading Fruit into Cars. — The transportation of fruit 
by rail calls for a very careful consideration in the 
methods of loading it into the car for shipment. In the 
first place, all the more perishable fruits must be so piled 
or placed in the cars that they will have a free circula- 
tion of air about every package. In the second place, 
they must be firm so that the switching or jolting of the 
car will not displace them. Fruit packages are not 
overly strong, and if once loosened before reaching their 
destination are likely to be broken and the fruit ruined. 

There are three general methods in use for the pack- 
ing of boxed fruit in cars. In some cases they are stood 
on end; in others on their side; and in a few cases, 



148 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

straight up. In most of the citrus fruit shipments 
from the West, the boxes are set on end. These boxes 
are longer than the apple box and have a partition 
through the center. This keeps the fruit from settling 
down too much, and by placing the package on end, 
two tiers will about fill the car to its capacity. 

Most of the apples that are shipped from the north- 
west, the boxes are placed on the side in the car, 
the long way of the box being placed the long way of 
the car. They are given air space for each box on 
the sides, top and bottom, which permits proper cir- 
culation. The ends, however, are placed together so as 
to avoid end play while the cars are being switched or 
jolted. 

In the case of the packages for cherries or grapes or 
other kinds of small fruits, where the boxes are made 
more rigid, several are placed together in one larger 
package like the four-box grape carriers that come from 
the "West. These are nearly always set straight up, leav- 
ing the air space, not between each separate box but be- 
tween each set of six boxes that are set together. In 
barrels no special precaution is necessary because each 
package is rigid enough to support the contents. They 
are usually set on end, two barrels high. In some cases 
they are laid on the side, but this is not usually desirable 
except where transportation is by boat. Most of the 
ocean shipments of barreled fruit are piled on the side 
instead of on end. 

In loading fruit into cars, a layer is placed on the 
floor of the car in the position desired and then 1 x iy 2 - 
inch cleats, long enough to reach across the car, are 
nailed to the ends of each box and fastened to the sides 



TRANSPORTATION 149 

of the car. One of these cleats is placed between each 
tier of boxes. This will prevent both end and side play, 
also separate each box sufficiently for the proper circula- 
tion of air. Each end of the car is loaded in this way 
until the door in the center is reached and then, instead 
of filling this space with fruit, it is left open, each half 
being braced by itself. To do this, 2 x 4-inch uprights 
are placed in front of each row of boxes and nailed to 
the floor and roof of the car. Then between these and 
across the center space are put braces to prevent the 
giving and loosening of the load. 

The capacity of refrigerator cars varies in accord- 
ance with the length of the car. Usually they are made 
in three different lengths, 36, 40 and 42 feet. For 
apples and citrus fruit, the capacity of these is about 
as follows: Thirty-six-foot car for apples, 500 boxes; 
citrus, 336. Forty-foot car for apples, 550 boxes; cit- 
rus, 384. Forty-two- foot car for apples, 600 boxes; 
citrus, 409. Where half boxes are shipped instead of 
the regular size the number will be about 50% greater. 
When apples are shipped in barrels, the cars will hold 
from 150 to 200 barrels. 

In ocean traffic, there is, of course, no limit to the 
number of boxes or barrels which may be shipped on 
some of the larger vessels. It is not infrequent to find 
from 40,000 to 60,000 barrels sent to Europe by one 
boat. While the motion of the larger boats is not usu- 
ally very great, considerable damage is often done to 
fruit shipped by water. Most of this is probably done 
in the loading and unloading of the boat rather than 
from the movement of the ship. The packages are not 
ordinarily made rigid when thus shipped. Most of 



150 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



such fruit goes into the hold of the ship as ballast 
rather than in any other way. 

On the smaller boats for coast or river traffic, fruit is 
usually loaded by truckers who run the packages down 
the gangway into the freight quarters, but for the larger 
ocean boats, the packages are hoisted in a net run- 
ning from 5 to 15 barrels at one time. These are 




Fig. 107.— EFFICIENT TRANSPORTATION ON GOOD ROADS 
FOR 15 OR 20 MILES 



lifted by the donkey engine and lowered into the hold. 
"Where this is carefully done, it causes little injury to 
the fruit, but where no special pains is taken, fruit can 
easily be spoiled or badly bruised. 

Water traffic is likely, in the near future, to play a 
very important role in competition with railroad ship- 
ment of fruit. The Panama Canal will aid materi- 
ally in getting considerable quantities of fruit products 
from the "Western to the Eastern markets. For perish- 



TRANSPORTATION 151 

able fruits, it will not be possible to ship by way of the 
Panama Canal. For other fruits that will stand from 
20 to 30 days or more before using, the canal can easily 
be made use of. From the Pacific Coast via the canal to 
New York and Boston, will require probably a minimum 
of 20 days and at a total freight cost of half of the 
overland shipments. 

"Where the fruit grower is fortunate enough to have a 
good local market, he has great advantage over distant 
shippers. "Where roads are good and the haul is not 
over 20 or 30 miles, motor trucks can be used. In many 
places in the East these are now strong competitors of 
the transportation companies. Where the business is 
sufficient to warrant the first expense of a motor truck 
a considerable saving in time and money can be had 
over the use of railroads. 



CHAPTER VIII 



FRUIT MARKETS 



Location of Markets. — It has been only in the more 
recent years that the general fruit-grower or orchardist 
has taken any interest in the selling of his fruit products. 
The old custom was to grow the fruit the best he could 
and then turn it over to some other agency to dispose 
of. If buyers did not appear when the crop was ready, 
the only alternative was to send the fruit to some com- 
mission man and then trust to luck for results. The 
present tendency is for the grower to take an active 
interest, in the disposition of the fruit, and in many 
cases do the actual selling himself. 

At present there are three well-defined channels 
through which the fruit passes to the consumer. These 
may be denned as the "home market/' the city market 
and the foreign market. The home market is the town, 
city or village within a few miles of the place of produc- 
tion, where deliveries may be made direct by the grower. 
The city markets call for the transporting of fruit by 
rail or water and constitute, by far, the most important 
outlet. Probably 75% of the fruit actually sold is 
consumed in the city markets. 

The foreign markets are those in other countries be- 
sides the United States. Even our neighbor, the Do- 
minion of Canada, where fruit is shipped across the line 

.152 



154 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

only a few hours' journey would be considered a foreign 
market. These are of necessity more or less arbitrary 
classifications and will depend more upon the way in 
which the fruit is handled than upon the location or 
size of the cities where the fruit is sold. 

Selling at Home. — Most producers believe that they 
can best dispose of their crop in their own immediate 
neighborhood providing the quantity produced is not 
more than can be consumed in their particular location. 
A good many things may be said in favor of the home 
market and the consensus of opinion among practically 
all growers is that the home market is the best where the 
supply is not too large. In the larger fruit-growing sec- 
tions, much larger quantities are produced than could 
ever be consumed at home or even in the larger cities 
of the surrounding territory, hence shipments for long 
distances to the Eastern markets must be relied upon. 

When selling at home several principles enter in, 
which do not apply in the same way to long distance ship- 
ments: (1) This method eliminates all possibility of the 
profits going to some middleman. (2) It gives the 
grower a chance to use his own personality by getting 
acquainted with customers. (3) It allows him to under- 
stand their wants and needs and better enables him to 
grow each year their particular requirements. It also 
gives him a chance to develop his individual ability 
along various lines. He comes in direct competition with 
his neighbor producers, and gives him a keener business 
insight into the ways and means of conducting a busi- 
ness. 

In some cases where it is not convenient to sell direct 
to the consumers it is occasionally possible to sell to the 



FRUIT MARKETS 155 

retailers or to the small grocery stores in the home 
towns. Arrangements can be made ahead of time 
for the grower to produce such material as can be 
sold readily by the retailer. This does away with con- 
siderable personal canvassing and gives the grower more 
time to attend to the producing end of the business. 
Furthermore, it often promotes a more friendly feeling 
between the producers and the retailers because where 
the grower retails his own produce he becomes a com- 
petitor of the retail stores, hence often they do not work 
in harmony. Where retailers are patronized direct the 
grower cannot expect as large returns as from the sell- 
ing of his own goods to the consumer because the retailer 
must then make his profit which on the more perishable 
fruits runs from 25 to 100% of the value. 

Another method often resorted to by the producer is 
to sell direct to buyers in the home town. The more 
staple articles of fruit and vegetables can often be dis- 
posed of this way. The buyer then assumes the responsi- 
bility of the fruit and does the shipping or selling at 
his own risks. The grower settles his account then with 
the buyer and gets his money before the goods are 
shipped out of town. This occasionally is a very satis- 
factory method, but often the buyer is well posted on the 
market conditions and does not presume to take any 
great risk, hence the price offered for the goods is usually 
very much less than could be realized if the grower 
choose to handle the sales himself. 

Selling Away From Home. — Where fruit is shipped 
beyond the distance that it is possible to deliver by the 
grower, then it must be trusted in the hands of some 
third party. Often the railroad companies or boat lines 



156 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

assume a large part of this duty. Such fruit may be 
handled through the medium of the commission man who 
then takes his pro-rata toll for doing the work. It may 
also be sold through certain cooperative organizations 
controlled by the growers themselves, but this also costs 
a certain amount and though usually less than the com- 
mission house plan requires a certain percentage of the 
gross sales. 

In some cases it is possible for producers to cater to 
a private trade where the distance for shipping is not too 
great, such as summer resort places, large hotels, club 
houses, etc. Arrangements are made, usually several 
months ahead of time, to deliver certain quantities and 
kinds of produce to the managers of such places. They 
always demand the very best that can be had and only 
growers who are thoroughly versed on producing the 
best can expect to do very much business with such 
private trade. 

There is also the possibility of putting the fruit in 
storage when sent away from home. This will depend 
upon the seller's knowledge of market conditions and, 
although he assumes the entire risk, he often is suffi- 
ciently informed and can profit by so doing. It is ex- 
ceedingly interesting to contrast these two methods of 
selling produce either at home or shipping away. They 
have many points in common, yet differ widely in a great 
many respects. There is no means of estimating just 
what quantity or per cent of fruit is consumed at home 
and what part sent away, but outside of the amount con- 
sumed by the growers themselves it is a fair estimate 
to say that 75% of the fruit products are sold upon 
the larger market. This means that, by far, the larger 



FRUIT MARKETS 157 

part of the fruit must be handled through the wholesale 
or larger markets. 

The net profits received from such sales are usually 
smaller than those from the home market. There are so 
many middlemen and agents that must receive their 
quota of the sales price, which cuts down the profit 
much smaller than when sold at home. The competition 
is also greater. The fruits in the large cities come in 
competition with fruits from widely different sections. 
Not only do they come in competition with the same 
kind of fruits but also with other fruits from the 
tropics and from the warmer part of the United States. 

"While the shipper or grower of a certain commodity 
might not have any competition among the different 
fruits in his home market he might have considerable in 
the larger markets of the cities. "When growing fruit 
for the home market a very different grade and quality 
of fruit is required. The number and kinds of varieties 
grown is much larger. Home markets usually demand 
varieties of fruit from the very earliest of the season to 
those that will extend through the winter and keep late 
into the spring. This would mean that the grower must 
select more different varieties than he would for the 
city market. 

Most of the requirements of the large markets are for 
standard varieties of fruit. This does not mean that a 
purchaser cannot buy more different kinds of fruit in the 
large cities than he can in the small ones, but from the 
standpoint of the grower he would want a less number 
of varieties for shipping to the large markets than for 
home use. The quality of the fruit varies in two or 
three different ways. It is a well-known fact that most 



158 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

growers shipping to a large market will send away the 
best fruit they have. Any one that is familiar with the 
South or with the West, especially California, where 
many fruits of sub-tropical nature come from, can by 
walking through the markets of New York, Boston, or 
Chicago, find better fruit on the markets most any 
day than he has observed offered for sale in the locali- 
ties in which the fruit is grown. 

The quality of the fruit in regard to flavor and degree 
of palatability is frequently much better when the home 
market is patronized. Fruit requiring long hauls is 
often picked before it is fully matured, hence does not 
cbevelop as high a quality when sold in the larger markets, 
especially is this true of the Southern and Western 
fruits. Fruits like apples or pears to ship well and 
carry a long distance must have certain qualities of tex- 
ture and thickness of skin to enable them to be shipped. 
This condition is often associated with poor eating or 
cooking qualities of the fruit itself. So the better va- 
rieties are grown for the home market ; those which have 
the better quality and flavor. Many such varieties could 
not be used for general market fruits because of the in- 
ability to stand rough handling or long shipments. 

Transportation must also be considered when sending 
fruit away from home. Arrangements must be provided 
for the loading and handling of cars, also for the track- 
age and warehouse space necessary on the selling end 
of the line. This requires considerable skill. Where a 
large quantity of fruit is handled the services of a special 
agent who has made a study of these conditions is re- 
quired. Where foreign shipments are contemplated, 
ocean traffic, freight rate, tariffs, etc., must be studied 



FRUIT MARKETS 159 

out and it is not always possible for growers of fruit to 
be in a position to properly handle such matters. Hence, 
the common advice among small growers is to sell at 
home what he can and let the rest go. 

There are a few well-known faults of producers who 
sell at home. If he has a surplus he ships it away, and 
usually the best fruit is what is shipped. Unless there is 
a large quantity of similar kinds of fruit grown he asks 
the retailer or consumer in his home town the same 
price which he would have to pay if he bought from the 
stores. Often the fruit that he has sent away to other 
markets will bring him somewhat less than that which 
he has sold at home. While this is recognized as good 
business acumen it is a question whether it is conducive 
to the best interest of the fruit grower. 

Supply and Demand. — The two words "Supply and 
Demand'' have been much used and much abused by 
many of the writers on market questions. There are a 
number of conditions that effect supply that are in no 
way related to demand and the converse is true as well. 
When the supply exceeds the demand it does not neces- 
sarily mean that there is an over-production. It simply 
indicates that there is more fruit offered at any one time 
than there is a market for. It may also mean that the 
method of distribution is at fault, or because of the in- 
accessibility of certain markets the supply can not be 
reached. On the other hand, because there is a heavy 
demand for certain kinds of fruit it does not necessarily 
indicate a lack of supply. The word over-production 
should not be used in the sense that there is too much 
fruit grown to meet the needs of the consuming public, 
because this condition has never been reached, 



160 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

Among the factors that influence the supply of fruit 
may be mentioned the following: (1) Weather condi- 
tions. (2) Skill necessary to grow the fruit. (3) The 
climatic zones. (4) Cost of production. (5) High 
market prices. (6) Transportation facilities. (7) Per- 
ishability of the fruit. (8) The storage problem. The 
first or weather condition probably accounts for the 
greatest fluctuation in supply. Where certain fruits are 
grown over a large area there is seldom a total crop 
failure due to weather conditions. 

On the other hand, limited fruit enterprises like the 
almond industry of the West have occasional years of 
almost absolute failure due to peculiarities of climatic 
conditions. In other years it may be unusually good, 
hence we have the fluctuation in the fruit crops. For 
example, the apple yield has ranged from 25,000,000 
barrels in one season to about 65,000,000 the next, and 
this uncertainty and variation cannot help but influ- 
ence to a large extent the price paid for fruit. 

The skill necessary to grow fruit is a potent factor in 
influencing the supply. The more skill required to pro- 
duce a fruit the higher priced the product, and since 
extreme high prices are not long in demand the more 
skill necessary to grow any particular kind of fruit, 
the less the supply of that fruit. The climatic zones influ- 
ence market conditions so that it restricts certain fruits 
to small areas. Where the area that will be favorable to 
any particular fruit is limited, the supply must be 
limited or the fruit imported from more favorable for- 
eign countries. 

The cost of production very materially influences the 
quantity of fruit offered for sale. Where the cost equals 



FRUIT MARKETS 161 

or exceeds the market price the incentive to produce 
fruit is lost, and unless better facilities can be found 
for growing in those particular localities production 
must be discontinued. High market prices always stim- 
ulate production, hence the supply. Invariably the 
fluctuation of market prices for fruit, due to climatic 
conditions, will stimulate interest and when prices are 
high the incentive is for the orchardist to set out more 
trees and increase his producing capacity. 

Transportation is entering more and more into the 
supply every year. There are excellent fruit-growing 
sections in all parts of the United States where fruit 
cannot be grown simply because transportation to a 
desirable market is not to be had. In fact, some of our 
best fruit-growing sections in the far West are yet un- 
touched because there are no profitable outlets to get 
the fruit to market. Each year some new section is 
brought into the market by better railroad facilities 
resulting in an increase acreage, thus stimulating the 
supply for a given fruit. 

Perishability is one of the chief factors influencing 
supply. Where better storage or transportation can be 
had, more perishable fruits can be kept through longer 
seasons, or shipped a longer distance. So the length 
of time certain perishable fruits appear upon the market 
will depend largely upon the cold storage facilities for 
that particular place. 

Where factors influencing demands are considered 
there are several conditions that enter in: (1) The 
prosperous condition of the country. (2) The quality 
of fruit offered. (3) Price set. (4) Popular use of 
the fruit as a food. (5) Knowledge of the fruit. (6) 



162 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

The seasons of the year. (7) The supply of other 
fruits. It is probable that the conditions of the country 
effect the fruit industry as much, if not more, than any 
other farm product. If the country is prosperous every- 
body can afford fruit. If the country is not, then the 
partial luxuries which include many of our better fruits 
are the first to be dispensed with, in an effort to reduce 
the cost of living. 

The bulk of the fruit in the larger cities 1 is sold to 
working men — the ones who draw salaries by the week or 
month, as clerks in factories, shops, etc. When these 
people are all busy earning good wages they all spend 
their money freely for fruits and are willing to pay a 
good price for good fruit. On the other hand, if busi- 
ness is dull many are often out of work. If the con- 
ditions, in general, are not encouraging the demand for 
fruit falls off on account of the reduced ability to buy. 

The quality of the fruit offered effects the demand 
materially. Most people are willing to pay a good price 
for good fruit. On the other hand, there are many who 
wait for a lower market price because of a surplus or an 
unusual heavy shipment, and where the quality is good 
there is always a ready market. Where the quality is 
poor the price runs down and the demand usually be- 
comes much less. The price asked for the fruit also 
effects the demand. Certain organizations establish their 
own price. If their managers put it too high, buyers 
will not take the fruit. If the cost of production is so 
high that the price must be put where the fruit becomes 
a luxury, then the demand will again fall off. 

Certain fruits are used largely in the regular diet as 
a food. Fruits like the apple, banana, orange, etc., have 



FRUIT MARKETS 163 

become so popular in the home diet that they are no 
longer accepted as a luxury but are demanded by the 
regular household, hence a demand is always present for 
this class of fruit. Many efforts have been made to in- 
crease the popularity of certain fruits for food, and this 
has afways resulted in an increased demand. The ac- 
quaintanceship or knowledge of the fruit by the buyer 
has a surprising influence upon the demand of any fruit. 

Most of the buyers in the cities do not know that 
there are more than five or six kinds of apples. Per- 
sonally they may not be acquainted with more than 
two or three. Even most of the fruit growers who are 
familiar with apples and who see upon their markets 
large numbers of bananas recognize, perhaps, two types, 
while the growers of those bananas in their native habitat 
can easily recognize 40. So the knowledge of the variety 
from the buyer's standpoint effects the demand. No 
person is willing to go into a store and ask for fruit 
without knowing just what he wants, hence without 
bothering to name the variety he buys largely from ap- 
pearance or looks. Fruits that have a good appearance, 
nicely packed, are attractive and are the ones demanded 
by the buyer in the large market. 

When ordering fruit from the retailer over the tele- 
phone it is a common occurrence to have the groceryman 
or retailer ask the customer what varieties they want. 
The buyer unable to name more than one or two kinds 
selects the one that is best known and well established 
throughout the whole country. The demand for cer- 
tain well-known varieties is always much greater than 
for the less-known kinds, even though they may not be 
as good as some of the others for the purpose for which 
they are to be used. 



164 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

The seasons of the year effect the demand in that 
most of the buyers in the large cities want fruit only in 
its normal season. In the spring, everyone is anxious 
to get strawberries, and while they may be had later ki 
the year, the demand is greatest in the spring because 
of the habit of people buying fruit only when in season. ' 
This has led producers to a great rush to get fruit for 
the early market, realizing that the prices would be 
higher because of the increased demand. This has re- 
acted unfavorably against some of the Southern states 
so that they, in their haste to get fruit on the early 
market, have permitted themselves to pick it before it is 
sufficiently matured. As a consequence, the flavor and 
quality of the fruit was a disappointment to the pur- 
chaser and, through this means, certain fruit districts 
in the South and the West have become unpopular. 

Lastly, the supply of other fruits affects the demand 
through the price of the various kinds. For example, 
when oranges can be had more cheaply on the general 
market than apples, most of the consumers will buy the 
oranges ; when the apples become cheaper they will buy 
those, and when bananas are reduced below either or- 
anges or apples the probability is that the demand will 
increase for the bananas and decrease for the others. 

When considering the price paid for fruit, several 
important factors appear which are also associated with 
supply and demand. These could be enumerated as fol- 
lows: (1) Quantity of fruit offered. (2) Quality of 
fruit offered. (3) General prosperity of the country. 
(4) The attractiveness of the fruit. (5) The condition 
of the market. 

If the quantity of the fruit is large the price is apt 



FRUIT MARKETS 165 

to drop. If the quality is good the price will go up, 
and if poor, the opposite. General prosperity of the 
country affects the price in the same way as it does the 
demand, for as the demand increases the price usually 
goes up. Attractiveness of the fruit has a very material 
effect upon the price asked. It is a well-known fact 
that the majority of the consumers in the cities buy on 
looks rather than upon knowledge of the fruit itself. 
Hence the package in which fruit is placed has become 
recognized as a part of the real value of the contents. 
This is true to such an extent that in fruit shows the 
judges and the management of those shows attribute 
approximately a third of the value on the market to the 
attractive manner in which the fruit is put up. 

The conditions of the market are important because 
the things which affect the market will also affect the 
price. Markets have their good days and their bad days. 
Saturday or Friday afternoon are usually recognized as 
good days for markets because of the stocking-up of the 
household for the big Sunday dinner. Correspondingly, 
Monday is usually a bad day. There are fewer calls 
for fruit than on other days in the week. Markets 
gradually increase in their condition up until Friday 
and Saturday and then fall again early Monday morn- 
ing. 

Days just before legal holidays are always good market 
days. The week preceding Thanksgiving or -Christmas 
or New Year's are correspondingly good in influencing 
the market. The days following legal holidays are cor- 
respondingly poor. Weeks of rainy weather, effects of 
frost injury and conditions of the country materially 
influence the price. Instances in which grapes of the 



166 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

Eastern states have yielded enormous quantities, a frost 
appearing doing considerable damage to the grapes 
before most of them were harvested has often jumped 
the price from 10 to 20% in one day. 

Fluctuations in temperatures often influence the price. 
Large quantities of fruit may be sent into the market 
in cool weather. If an unusually warm spell appears 
the fruits will not keep well, hence, must be disposed 
of quickly. The price is correspondingly reduced in 
order to move the fruit. Then always the perishability 
or the relatively short keeping time of the fruit itself 
forces the sellers to quick action. The price is always 
regulated so as to move the fruit within a given time 
because, if it is not moved, it becomes a total loss and 
no one gets any value from it. 



CHAPTER IX 

SELLING AGENCIES 

Commission House. — The oldest and perhaps the best 
established method of selling produce in the United States 
is through the medium of the commission man. At 
present much discussion and considerable criticism has 
been heaped upon the commission man and his ways of 
doing business. Some of it has been just, but perhaps 
more of it has been unjust. The commission house theo- 
retically, is perhaps an unnecessary institution, but prac- 
tically no good way has been found to eliminate him. 
"While he is in a measure a necessary evil, he is still a 
very important factor in the selling and handling of 
fruit and farm produce. Commission houses are so 
situated that they can handle either small shipments or 
car lots. There are a great many fruit growers through- 
out the country who are not associated with any organi- 
zation and who have only a very small part of a carload 
to ship at any one time, and if it were not for the com- 
mission houses it would be impossible for them to sell 
their fruit. 

How Fruit is Handled. — The methods of doing busi- 
ness through the commission houses would be about as 
follows : Many of the houses send out solicitors or trav- 
eling agents. They go from place to place requesting 
that certain shipments of fruit be made to houses in 
the cities. Often they leave stencils with name and ad- 

167 



168 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

dress for labelling the boxes, and in various ways make 
it convenient for the grower to patronize them. They 
never offer to qnote any price or to advance cash for 
orders but always solicit shipments to be made direct to 
the commission house. 

The grower picks and packs his fruit according to the 
methods in use in his particular locality and places the 
address of the house on the packages, takes them to the 
railroad and sends them off. In a day or two after the 
goods are sent the grower should receive a card of 
acknowledgment from the commission man and then, 
a little later, after the goods are sold, he receives a bill 
of sale. "Where this bill of sale is properly made out 
it is an itemized list of all the different kinds, grades 
and varieties of fruit, and if there is one variety that 
sells in lots for different prices this is also to be listed. 

Commission houses get their name from the fact that 
they charge a certain per cent or commission on the gross 
receipts of the fruit sold. This is usually 10%, but in 
some cases they operate as low as 7 or even 5%. When 
the fruit is sold the commission is deducted from the 
gross amount of the sale, then the freight is deducted, 
and if there is any cartage or other charges, that is also 
deducted and a check drawn for the balance and for- 
warded to the producer. Along with this goes a receipted 
freight bill from the railroad or transportation com- 
pany showing the amount of freight paid for the ship- 
ment. It is not customary for most commission houses 
to do this, but the grower or shipper is entitled to it, 
and if it is not forwarded with the bill of sale the com- 
mission man should be requested to send one. 

There are several things for the producer to consider 



SELLING AGENCIES 169 

before selecting a commission house. In the first place, 
it is always good judgment to find out as much about 
the various commission houses as possible and get ac- 
quainted with the man in charge of the business. 
"Where a grower ships considerable produce to any one 
commission house it is well to take a trip to the city and 
familiarize himself with the conditions as far as possible ; 
also with the way in which the house handles his busi- 
ness. Where a grower has only a few dollars of produce 
each month this would not be advisable, but where it 
amounts up to several hundred dollars during the sea- 
son it certainly is time and money well spent. 

The wise shipper probably takes several of the produce 
papers which carry advertisements of various commis- 
sion houses. After selecting several he will make a trip 
to the city and investigate the reliability of each one. 
He can do this, first, by getting acquainted with the men 
and judging their character from observation. Second, 
he can ask for bank references and, by looking these up, 
determine if there is sufficient capital involved to insure 
prompt payments. He also wants to know if the com- 
mission house is a member of the National League of 
Commission Merchants. He can get information con- 
cerning them through that organization. When a house 
is once selected it is a good policy to stay with it through 
the season and unless some particular line of fruit de- 
mands a change it is well to ship the same varieties from 
year to year. 

Along with this goes certain rules which the producer 
does well to observe. First, it is well to have a brand or 
trade-mark for the fruit packages. It has often been 
observed by the people who are opposed to organiza- 



170 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

tions, that those who ship through such organizations lose 
their individuality, but when dealing with commission 
men the individuality of the grower has a chance for all 
the expression which he is able to give it. Therefore, 
by special care in the use of trade-marks or brands 
placed on packages one can often work up a reliable or 
enviable reputation for his fruit. 

Second, it is well to place confidence in the commis- 
sion men with whom a grower is dealing and ask advice 
regarding certain shipments and kinds of fruits, grades, 
varieties, packages, etc. The honest commission man will 
give his best attention to this and advise the grower 
what he thinks best to do. Third, it is well understood 
that the producer who keeps in close touch with the 
commission man will get better results from that house 
than the one who is not sufficiently interested to look 
into his business methods. 

If it is possible to assign any specific advantages or 
disadvantages to the use of the commission house it might 
be summed up in the following: (1) Producers can ship 
in small quantities. (2) Opportunities are greater for 
the individuality of the producer. (3) It makes an 
outlet for surplus stock when catering to a home market. 
The first reason is not a very strong one, because organ- 
izations have, now, the means whereby small quantities 
of produce can be shipped together in carlots. This does 
apply, however, to certain sections where there are no 
organizations and thereby affords an outlet for large 
quantities of stock for short distance shipping. 

Opportunities for individualities are often given as 
a reason why commission houses should be permitted, 
but this is not a particularly valid reason. Commission 



SELLING AGENCIES 171 

men are interested only in doing business and thus ob- 
tain their commission for the sale of the fruit. They have 
no vital connection with the producing end, and they 
are not acquainted with the problems which confront the 
grower. Also, the individuals who can work their per- 
sonality into something of importance are very rare. 
A few instances only can be mentioned where fruit is 
concerned. 

On the other hand, the organizations which have be- 
come of importance are numerous. The reason for this 
is obvious : That no one individual grower can produce 
large enough quantities or varieties of fruit to attract 
attention of a very wide market. Hence, his brand, 
which may be excellent, cannot be known over a very 
wide area. Exchanges handle sufficient quantities of 
fruit to make impressions on large markets and can af- 
ford to advertise so the consumer will know and under- 
stand their brand. In this way the individuality of the 
brand or grade of fruit becomes the important thing, 
rather than of the person who is growing or producing 
the fruit. 

Making an outlet for surplus is perhaps the most im- 
portant of the three advantages. There is no question 
in most producers' minds but that he gets the best 
results if he can sell his fruit at home, but in many 
cases the home market is limited. Hence, the only re- 
sort left is to ship to the commission houses. These will 
gladly handle his surplus and get out of it what they 
can. 

The disadvantages of commission houses are purely 
questions of business and may be enumerated under the 
following head: (1) Honesty of the commission men. 



172 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

(2) There is no check on charges or prices. (3) The 
producer has no opportunity to know or understand 
the market conditions. The first one need not be com- 
mented on particularly. But it is necessary that the 
grower use his best business judgment in getting a re- 
liable and honest house, and it is due to the unscrupulous 
commission men that so much vengeance has been de- 
clared against them. 

The lack of check on charges and prices is a situation 
which no good reliable business firm would tolerate. It 
would be out of the question to ask a buyer of a box 
of fruit to give a receipt for the amount of money paid 
and these to be forwarded to the man who had the fruit 
for sale, but yet again in the larger exchanges this is 
exactly what is done. Commission houses would prob- 
ably refuse to do this and it would entail considerable 
bookkeeping and, in many ways, would be impractical 
from the standpoint of the consumer, and so the custom 
has been to accept the statements of the commission men 
and ask for no receipts whereby to prove the correctness. 
The last, in the producer failing to know the market 
conditions, is a question of education and one which is 
vital to the industry of the fruit in general. No longer 
is it possible to grow fruit and get good results without 
also knowing of the conditions in which the fruit is sold 
and used, and the producer who patronizes the commis- 
sion men who does not have the opportunities to get in- 
formation of these conditions has little chance to improve 
himself and become a progressive grower. This, in the 
opinion of many of the more successful orchardists, is 
the greatest objection to the prevailing method of com- 
mission houses. 



SELLING AGENCIES 173 

In the final analysis, the desirability of the commis- 
sion man must rest upon his ability to render a real 
service to any community. Such service can only be 
measured in one or two ways. First, from the capital 
involved and, second, by the moral and educational ef- 
fect. Referring to the capital, of course, it is not pos- 
sible to give any carefully prepared statistics upon the 
amount of money invested in commission house business 
or in the amount of money made on the capital so in- 
vested. The commission of 10% is a relatively high 
profit, and the responsibilities are comparatively small. 

A small house capable of handling five or six cars of 
fruit every week can be easily rented for $100 a month. 
The commission man and one clerk could handle this 
business, making the total outlay of $150 to $200 a 
month. A car of fruit represents from $150 to $800 
in money. If he handles four a week he does a business 
of from $600 to $3,200, and by collecting a 10% profit 
upon this amount of business he is getting as much re- 
turns in one month as the average small farmer gets 
for his services in a whole year. An orchardist, to pro- 
duce a car of fruit, must have represented in capital 
from $2,000 to $4,000. He has his upkeep of this capital, 
the labor involved to grow the fruit, the interest, etc., 
upon money invested. For his year's work he gets 
perhaps as much on the total capital invested as does the 
commission man on a tenth of the same amount of money 
in one month's time. It is along these lines that the 
ultimate service of the commission men must stand or 
fall. 

Cooperation. — Cooperation in its broader sense means 
the banding together of a number of individuals to do 



174 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

business together. The number of individuals in the 
organization or the amount of business done is irrelative 
to the purpose of the organization. The idea is to co- 
operate among individuals to carry on the various in- 
terests as a single person. Much has been said and 
written in recent years regarding cooperative organiza- 
tions among fruit growers, and there appears to be a 
growing tendency in all producing sections to form some 
kind of an organization. This is not only true among 
the producers but also among the sellers or distributors. 

From the fruit growers' standpoint, cooperative or- 
ganization may include the following: (1) The growing 
of the fruit. (2) The harvesting operation. (3) Pack- 
ing and grading the fruit. (4) Selling operations. (5) 
The buying of supplies for the producers. All of these 
may be included in the workings of the organization, or 
only a single one of them, yet the purpose of cooperat- 
ing is still fulfilled. As a matter of fact the principle 
subject which has led to the organization of cooperative 
measures has been primarily for the selling of the 
produce, and the others have developed as incidental to 
the one big idea. 

There are from the standpoint of the organization it- 
self two important kinds: one is known as the profit- 
sharing organization and the other as the non-profit 
sharing. Of these two the former is by far the oldest, 
and the one which is usually referred to where large 
industries are concerned, such as mining, manufacturing, 
etc., but in connection with agriculture the profit-sharing 
organizations have, for the most part, gradually given 
way or been superseded by the non-profit sharing plan. 
The former, or profit-sharing organization is run. as a 



SELLING AGENCIES 175 

stock company; that is, stock certificate, either common 
or preferred, is subscribed among the organizers and the 
business is then conducted upon dividend-paying basis, 
the surplus being returned to the shareholders. 

To form an organization of this kind, it would be 
necessary for the promoters to go through the fruit- 
growing sections and get growers to subscribe for certain 
amounts of stock. This may be varied from $1 up to 
$10 or even $50 a share. Stockholders would then be- 
come voters in the organization and be responsible for 
the management of the same. Often, stock is subscribed 
but only a portion of it paid in, the rest being gradually 
paid up in the &hape of dividends through succeeding 
years. 

The producers must subscribe money before it can be 
started. It is necessary for them to contribute suificient 
sums to get the organization under way, and then they 
must take chances upon possible returns. Most of the 
fruit-growing class are more or less skeptical in regard to 
these organizations and are slow to put up money to 
properly get them into working condition. Many of these 
organizations have been failures simply from the fact 
that a sufficient number of shares get into the hands 
of more or less unscrupulous men to control the voting 
powers of the organization, and they then can play into 
the hands of their competitors and in that way the or- 
ganization is blocked, hence cannot fulfill its purpose. 

The non-profit sharing organizations are the ones which 
are now being operated throughout the United States 
and the ones which, with a few exceptions, have made the 
greatest success. These do not call for the subscription 
of money among the growers, or for the issue of stock, 



176 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

but pay running expenses by levying a tax upon each 
package sold. The idea is simply to deduct enough from 
the sales of each package to run the business. Most of 
the money for operating exchanges of this kind is pro- 
vided by deducting from the sales a flat tax, based on 
the number of packages handled. 

For example, the California Fruit Exchange charges a 
tax of 5 cents a box on all oranges and lemons sold. 
Another set of growers charges a flat tax of 1 cent a pound 
on all almonds handled. Still another exchange levies 
1/4 cent a pound on all prunes, raisins, etc. This 
amount, in all cases, has been found sufficient to carry 
on the business of the exchanges and still have a work- 
ing surplus to carry them through into the next season. 
When this surplus reaches a certain amount it is then 
returned back pro rata to the members of the exchange. 

The people who promoted these exchanges first se- 
cured the backing of three or four extensive growers 
in their neighborhood who were willing to advance 
$500 to $1,000 to get the organization under way. 
Then the exchanges are effected in the following way: 
Promoters will visit the orchardists of each section, ex- 
plain the plan to them, show them in what ways the 
profits are returned and that there is no money to be 
put up until there is something to be sold. On the 
other hand, they are asked to sign an agreement whereby 
they will not sell any fruit except through the exchange. 
This ties up their fruit and does not give them permis- 
sion to sell in any other way. 

In this way large quantities of fruit have been secured 
to sell through the organization almost before the growers 
were aware that anything particular was under foot. 



SELLING AGENCIES 177 

In some states where laws are not favorable to non-profit 
sharing corporations, capital stock is issued for just suf- 
ficient to cover the requirements of the law; some cases 
as low as $1 to each member of the exchange. This is 
turned in to cover office supplies and so on. Then the 
business is still conducted on the non-profit sharing 
scheme, still charging a tax just sufficient to cover the 
cost of the organization with no thought or idea of 
declaring any dividends upon the original investment. 
Most states, however, permit non-profit sharing business 
organizations in which case the small issue of stock is 
not necessary. 

How Organized. — From the viewpoint of managing 
cooperative organizations, they are divided into three 
branches : The local, the district and the central organ- 
izations. This is especially necessary where a good many 
individuals are concerned. The local organization is 
made up of the individuals in a given fruit-producing 
section. In the small towns or centers of production 
covering a radius of 5 or 10 miles, growers will get to- 
gether and organize, to carry on the business of fruit 
selling or growing in their particular locality. This was 
the original idea in forming exchanges, and there are 
still scattered over the United States a number of these 
local exchanges which have never become affiliated with 
larger organizations. It was later found that these 
locals were acting the same as individuals, and where 
buyers in any fruit sections could secure a price from 
one local exchange the rest of them would have to fol- 
low suit. In other words, it becomes simply a game of 
competition against each other, as before the organiza- 
tion was formed. 



178 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

Many of the fruit sections in each district became a 
competitor of other sections, especially where the ship- 
ments were large enough to interest buyers from outside 
points. After some experimenting along this line it was 
found necessary for the local organizations to get to- 
gether and agree on the prices that they were to take 
for their products. This was in no sense an organiza- 
tion, but simply a mutual agreement. There was noth- 
ing to bind this agreement except the word of honor 
which, in many cases, did not last very long. Buyers 
and jobbers soon became aware of this condition and 
often went to unscrupulous means to get one exchange 
to set its price and then almost compel the other local 
organizations to fall in line. 

Later, it was found necessary to organize these locals 
into a central exchange and handle the business, not 
through each local office, but through a general man- 
ager who represented all the exchanges. This, in some 
cases, is known as the central organization, and in others, 
as the district. Then further, where several states or 
fruit-growing sections were involved, shipping to the 
same market became again a question of competition 
among these districts and further efforts were made to 
get the districts together and form a central organiza- 
tion. 

One California exchange has over 90 local organiza- 
tions, at the present time, comprising nearly 8,000 mem- 
bers. These local organizations are combined into 15 
district organizations and the district organizations 
again combined into one central exchange. This same 
plan is followed out by another set of distributors. A 
large number of local exchanges have formed together 



SELLING AGENCIES 179 

in certain district exchanges. These all combined to 
form a large selling organization. In this way one man 
becomes the manager of the organization, handles all 
the business and has before him information from all 
the different parts of the country regarding both the 
markets and the production. He is able to control to a 



3 © 






°~mf-o /^ '- ° 



N n (PS An "V^\i"~T0 

Fig. 109.— COMMON METHOD OF COMBINING LOCAL ASSOCIA- 
TIONS INTO A CENTRAL ORGANIZATION 

large extent the output, and so places it as to avoid com- 
peting against each other and thereby getting a better 
price. 

The Management of Exchanges. — The history of co- 
operative organizations among farmers is prolific of a 
wonderful amount of experimental work coupled with 
considerable loss and a great many failures. It has been 



180 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

slow to evolve a working organization. There has been 
two ways in which the management of exchanges has been 
effected. The first and oldest was probably by mutual 
agreement. The growers got together and agreed to do 
so and so. They may have had a constitution and by- 
laws but there were no particular restrictions against 
their falling out or breaking away from those agree- 
ments if conditions were in their favor and they so 
desired. 

A recent experiment of this kind in one of the North- 
ern states will illustrate the point: A fruit growers' 
exchange was organized to handle apples primarily. 
Two men owned a very large number of trees and these 
constituted the bulk of their apple crop. One year 
a buyer came in and made these two men a good offer 
for their fruit on the trees, and they sold. When the 
organization got ready to handle their business they 
found that the bulk of the crop had already been bar- 
gained for, hence the exchange was a failure. 

The present method, and the only one that has been 
associated with a large measure of success, has been the 
incorporation of the exchange under the laws of the 
state. This gives the exchange a legal existence, it has 
the protection of the state, and also throws around it 
certain restrictions which are a big help to the producers. 
Most all states provide for ways and means of incorpor- 
ating both profit-sharing and non-profit sharing organ- 
izations. The Secretary of State usually furnishes blanks 
for this purpose, and records the articles of incorpora- 
tion on books the same as a deed is recorded on the county 
record books. 

The organization then becomes a responsible party ; it 



SELLING AGENCIES 181 

can buy or sell, do business legally, and the directors 
become responsible for the business of the concern. 
Claims can be filed against them or they can file claims 
against others the same as individuals. They have power 
and authority to contract with other companies such as 
railroads or boat lines, to request hearings before state 
railway commissions, or even the Interstate Commerce 
Commission. It also gives the individual a right to file 
proceedings against the organization. In this way the 
exchange is given the dignity, reality and recognition of 
which no mutual contract or any kind of an agreement 
other than the incorporated method can be a success. 

Incorporating. — The details of incorporating, of 
course, differ in different states and vary according to 
the needs and requirements of the producing sections 
in which it is formed, but certain articles of incorpora- 
tion must be made up and filed with the Secretary of 
the State and, in these articles of incorporation, the state 
usually requires certain stereotyped information. 

In most states the articles of incorporation would have 
to include the following information: (1) The name of 
the organization; this to become the legal title of the 
exchange and it would then be known under that title. 
(2) The object of the organization; what it proposes to 
do and the purpose for which it exists. (3) The prin- 
cipal place of business ; this is usually where the central 
or head office is located. It does not necessarily have to 
be in the close proximity of the fruit-producing section. 
(4) The term of existence of the organization. This 
may be 10, 25, 50 or 100 years, according to the wishes 
of the organizers. (5) The capital stock, both the com- 
mon and the preferred. Of course, if it is a non-profit 



1S2 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

sharing organization this would not be necessary. (6) 
The number and names of the directors. This is only 
required in a few states. This requirement was put in 
so that the number and names of directors for the first 
year would be known to prevent, to a certain extent, 
monopolistic tendencies of certain trusts. (7) The voting 
powers of the members of the exchange. This is worked 
out in various ways. In the case where stock is issued 
usually one vote would be allowed with each share of 
stock held. In such cases anyone having 51% of the stock 
would have a controlling vote of the exchange, and so 
some way is usually provided to prevent any member 
getting more than a 15 or 20% interest in the exchange. 

In the non-profit sharing organizations, votes are usu- 
ally cast in accordance to the fruit handled the previous 
season. For example, in a certain apple exchange, if a 
grower shipped, the previous year, 1,000 barrels of apples 
he would be given 10 votes, or one for each 100 barrels 
shipped or fraction of 100 barrels. Therefore, in the 
following year he would be entitled to 10 votes. This 
would give the larger producers a preponderance of 
power in the voting, but this is generally considered 
just because of their larger interest represented. 

All this information goes to the Secretary of State 
and is there recorded upon the books of corporations 
and becomes common knowledge to anyone who wishes 
to investigate the matter. Then, associated with these 
articles of incorporation is the constitution or by-laws 
of the organization itself. Each local organization may 
be incorporated separately, and it is not necessary for 
these organizations to all have the same articles of in- 
corporation, neither is it necessary for the local and the 



SELLING AGENCIES 183 

central organizations to have the same rules governing 
each. This gives more flexibility to the local organiza- 
tions and prevents them from getting into any peculiar 
conditions which would make it difficult to operate them. 

One local society might desire to build a warehouse. 
Another local organization might not. There are a 
number of other similar cases which might be mentioned 
due to peculiarities of local conditions. This would not 
make it feasible or advisable for both of them to be 
governed by the same strict rules. The by-laws or con- 
stitution contains the working agreement of these organ- 
izations. It specifies: (1) The powers and duties of 
the directors. (2) Powers and duties of the officers. 
(3) The meetings. (4) The declaring and handling of 
the dividends. If it is non-profit sharing, the arranging 
of the taxes for operating and plan for disposing of 
the surplus. (5) The method of electing the directors. 
(6) The methods of issuing stock certificates, kind and 
dimension, and so on. (7) Membership. 

The membership agreement is necessary and provides 
ways and means for new members to get into the organ- 
ization, as well as for a way for dissatisfied ones to get 
out. No individual will sign himself up for life and, 
therefore, he must have a means of withdrawing from 
the exchange if not satisfied. This is usually provided 
for during one month of each year, most always follow- 
ing the annual meeting and the closing of the business 
for the fiscal year. Most apple exchanges would have 
their annual meeting probably in March or April, after 
the season's crop was all sold, and then the following 
month an opportunity is given for any member to with- 
draw by settling his account with the exchange. (8) 



184 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

Provision for the annual report, the publication of spe- 
cial information and methods of conducting the busi- 
ness for the next year. (9) The rules of the business of 
the exchange. 

Kules for business conduct are usually done away with 
or passed over by simply stating that the rules will be 
those usually followed by all legal organizations. This 
would consist, as followed by most incorporated bodies 
by first having a roll call of members at the meeting, 
reading and acceptance of the minutes of the previous 
meeting, report of special committee, unfinished business, 
new business, and so on through the election of officers 
and on down. This is simply a precautionary measure 
against troubles that might arise from factions in the 
internal structure of the organization. 

The usual methods of electing directors would be for 
each district or producing section to be represented in the 
management. Each local association elects one delegate 
to the central office who becomes a director of the ex- 
change. These directors, then, are responsible for the 
running of the organization. They hire the manager, 
fix his salary, and define his methods of business and 
limit him as they see fit. Most of the directors usually 
work without salary but getting expenses paid when 
attending meetings. The only salaried position other 
than that of manager would probably be that of the 
secretary of the exchange. 

Collecting Information. — One of the chief functions 
of the exchange is to collect information. This is done 
from three sources: (1) At home. (2) From city 
markets. (3) From competing points. The question of 
collecting information is one that has been sadly ne- 



SELLING AGENCIES 185 

glected by a great many exchanges and one which is 
vital to the best interests of the organization. In the 
spring, after the old crop is out of the way and the man- 
agement is then turning its attention to the oncoming 
crop he begins to need information regarding conditions 
from the producing end. The manager makes up a list 
of questions, puts them in bulletin form, leaving a space 
to write in the answer and sends a copy to each member. 

Among the questions that he would ask would be the 
following: (1) Name and address. (2) Number of 
acres in fruit. (3) Kinds of fruit. (4) Estimate of 
the crop. This is properly done in the early season. 
Each member of the exchange fills in the blank and re- 
turns it to the main office in June or early July. The 
manager gets the data together and begins to file it in 
shape to be available later when the time for selling 
comes. Then a little later in August, or early Sep- 
tember, when it would be possible to predict rather 
accurately the prospects of the oncoming crop, another 
set of questions would be sent out. This time special 
attention would be given to the name or the varieties 
of the fruit grown, the number of trees in bearing of 
each of these varieties and an estimate of the crop, not 
only as to the quantity but as to the probable grades 
or quality. 

In the first year of the life of the exchange this is 
rather difficult to get, but where the information has 
been kept from year to year through this medium it 
becomes quite easy to predict a month or two ahead of 
time what per cent of the fruit will be good and what 
part will be fancy or No. 1. The manager classifies this 
information so he is able to forecast pretty accurately 



186 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

Sample of Information Blank Sent to "M embers 

Form A. INFORMATION BLANK 

Notice. Each member of the local association will fill out the 

following blank and mail to the manager of the Fruit 

Growers ' Exchange by . , 19 

1. Name and address 

2. Number of acres in orchard 

3. Number of bearing trees 

4. List of varieties of apples and number of bearing trees of each : 



5. Number of barrels harvested last year. 

6. Estimate of crop for 19 

7. Varieties. Bbl. estimate 19 



8. How many boxes will you need 1 

9. How many barrels will you need? . 

10. Do you desire the Fruit Growers' Exchange to 

supply your boxes or barrels ? 

Return to 

Manager Fruit Growers ' Exchange, 



SELLING AGENCIES 187 

how many packages of fruit he will have to sell, how 
much of each variety and approximately the quantity in 
the grades of each kind. When this information is tab- 
ulated it is forwarded to the selling branch of the ex- 
change, which immediately proceeds to find sale for the 
fruit. This method gives the exchange fully six weeks 
and in some cases three months advantage over the indi- 
vidual who does not make any attempt to place his fruit 
until it is packed and ready to sell. 

Collecting information from the larger city markets 
is quite as important as that from the producers. The 
larger exchanges have their own agents in every city. It 
is the business of these agents to keep in touch with the 
people who buy, the amount of fruit shipped daily, and 
the movements of all kinds of produce. Small exchanges 
which are not large enough to have their own agent, con- 
tract with certain selling organizations which make a 
business of handling fruit, and have these organizations 
do the work which they are not able to do themselves. 
It is not uncommon to find one selling organization in a 
large city handling the business of 40 or 50 of the smaller 
exchanges. One in particular, in New York City, handles 
fruit from some of the-smaller exchanges from 24 differ- 
ent states in the Union. 

The information from the city markets would include 
the following: The daily receipts of fruit, daily con- 
sumption of fruit, daily re-shipments and the general 
market conditions. In the larger cities considerable 
fruit is shipped direct and then re-shipped to smaller 
outlying districts. This information is collected daily, 
especially through the busy season, and by code tele- 
grams forwarded, each night, by night letter to the gen- 



188 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

eral manager's office. In the morning the manager will 
then have all the information from all the larger markets 
which his agents represent. He would know the general 
conditions of each market, about what frnit they could 
handle, what varieties are bringing the highest prices 
and the general tendency of the market for the next two 
or three days. He would also have at his finger tips 
the amount of fruit in the warehouses of the organiza- 
tion, how much would need to be sold at once, and how 
much could wait. From this information he draws his 
conclusions as to what markets are best suited to handle 
his shipments for the next two or three days. In this 
way it is almost impossible to force fruit upon an al- 
ready overcrowded market while another city is decidedly 
lacking in certain grades and kinds of fruits. 

The information from competing points is not so im- 
portant as the other but still is highly desirable. A 
number of the "Western exchanges have men in other 
states who collect information regarding the crop. One 
California exchange has its agents in Florida, watching 
the conditions of the Florida citrus crop. Also the 
Florida organizations have their agents in California. 
In this way the exchange keeps in touch with the busi- 
ness. One exchange has its agents in Europe, collecting 
information, and constantly keeps the home office in 
touch with the fruit situation. This information is col- 
lected and forwarded by letter usually, or, if considered 
important, by wire. The agents report the condition of 
the crop, quantity and the quality of the fruit, daily 
shipments, where the fruit is sent and the prospects of 
the market for the shipmenfs of fruit for the next two 
or three days or a week. 



SELLING AGENCIES 189 

The manager with this information before him can 
forecast, daily, abont how mnch the shipments from 
other sections of the country will come into competition 
with the fruit which he is endeavoring to sell. By so 
doing he can place his shipments in such a way that he 
will compete the least with any other section of the coun- 
try. Some of the fruit exchanges are so well organized 
that, almost any day in the year, a buyer can get fruit 
from their exchange and never hear of a surplus or 
oversupply. With all this information in the hands of 
one man, it is possible to work out scientific principles 
of distribution which will cost the producers the least 
possible amount in getting the greatest possible returns. 

Dispersing Information. — A large part of this knowl- 
edge collected by the exchange becomes of interest to the 
producer, and the exchanges make an effort to place 
before the growers such information as may be of value 
to them. One of the chief methods of doing this is by 
distributing the annual report published by the man- 
agement at the central office. In this annual report is 
usually a summary of trie business for the year, number 
of cars of fruit shipped, number of packages sold, the 
markets to which they went, the general methods of dis- 
tribution, etc. Then associated with that is a forecast 
for the coming season. Recommendations for the local 
associations to follow out in attempting to improve or 
better their output. This annual report also includes a 
statement of the finances of the organization, the ex- 
penses of the management, the sales department, ship- 
ping department, etc. 

Another means of keeping the grower informed on 
conditions of the market is the daily or weekly bulletin, 



190 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

usually published by the large exchanges. This includes 
for the most part a recapitulation of the general market 
conditions. It is usually put out only in the busy sea- 
son. The information collected by the sales forces and 
other branches of the work are studied over and summed 
up in a small leaflet, which is mailed out daily or weekly 
to the local exchanges and through them to each member 
of the association. 

Another way of furnishing information, although of 
a different class, is in connection with the Field Organ- 
ization bureau which advises producers how best to look 
after their orchards. It issues bulletins explaining the 
best methods of pruning, cultivating and fertilizing, and 
general care of the fruit trees. It also furnishes in- 
formation on other questions, such as the buying of sup- 
plies, where to get them as well as the various other 
articles that are frequently handled through the ex- 
changes. And most important of all is the giving of 
instruction or information regarding the harvesting, 
grading and packing of the fruit. 

The one great thing which has enabled exchanges to 
do business as they have lies in the fact that they are 
able to guarantee their pack. In order to do this they 
must supervise the grading and packing themselves. It 
has been found that each grower is not capable of put- 
ting up a uniform pack from year to year and, also, that 
the opinions of different men on just what is included 
in a certain grade is variable. To be sure of uniformity 
all the way through, the organizations either have to do 
the packing or grading or supervise it in some way. In 
most places they have experts who are trained for the 
work. Newer organizations have to inaugurate packing 



SELLING AGENCIES 191 

and grading schools during the slack season to give these 
men sufficient training that they may do the work in a 
highly efficient and satisfactory way. 

Financial Aid. — Another very important considera- 
tion in the management of exchange is its ability to aid 
financially deserving members of the organization. This 
is done in a number of different ways. In the first place, 
by assisting in the purchase of farm supplies, such as 
fertilizers, machinery, fruit packages, spraying material, 
etc. Occasionally a grower desires to handle these him- 
self, but more frequently the larger exchanges have a 
purchasing department where the materials are con- 
tracted on a large scale and then re-sold or re-distributed 
to the local association as needed. One large exchange 
was enabled to save 4 cents on the price of each package 
by contracting them in 25,000 and 50,000 lots. In this 
way they saved enough on the price of packages alone to 
pay the entire management of the exchange. 

Another way in which financial aid is often given is 
through the extension of credit. This is largely in co- 
operation with the supply department. "When the man- 
agement understands how much fruit the grower will 
have for sale he then can estimate the needed quantity 
of spraying material, packages, fertilizers, etc. They 
are often willing to supply this material as needed and 
wait for the paying of the bill until the fruit is sold. 
The grower often gets from $100 to $500 worth of sup- 
plies in this way and yet is not compelled to pay for 
them at any specified time, nor worry about the exten- 
sion of credit. The price is simply deducted from the 
sales of the fruit when returns are made. This, with a 
detailed statement regarding all deductions, gives an 



192 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

accurate and clear understanding to the grower of how 
the business is run. 

Loaning Money. — Still another means whereby an 
exchange frequently helps the members is through a 
loan department. This is purely a financial department 
where money is loaned to certain growers and is done on 
a strictly business basis. The one borrowing the money 
has, of course, to pay interest for its use. Very fre- 
quently it is difficult for a grower to get money from the 
bank or, in the newer sections, it is difficult to furnish 
security for a loan. In this way the exchange gives a 
very material aid to its members. In the Western states 
where large tracts of land are subdivided and sold upon 
a credit basis, payments to be made upon the install- 
ment plan, produces a rapid development of the country 
and often stretches the credit to the limit. 

"Where a grower is in need of money he writes to the 
manager of the exchange stating the facts of the case 
and then, either through the central office or through the 
local office, a committee is sent out to view the situation. 
If they deem that the conditions are fit to warrant a 
loan upon property it is recommended to the management 
of the exchange and the money is then forwarded. If 
not, they of course are under the necessity of refusing 
to make the loan. Often, through the special service 
bureau, members are able to make better bargains with 
real estate companies and to work out their own private 
problems to a much better advantage. 

Subdepartments in Management. — For the conveni- 
ence of handling the business, the large exchanges or- 
ganize their managing force into subdepartments just the 
same as any large manufacturing business would do. 



SELLING AGENCIES 193 

These are variously enumerated, but the following would 
represent the more common of these subdepartments : 
(1) Statistical. (2) Traffic. (3) Legal. (4) Field or- 
ganization. (5) Advertising. (6) Selling. (7) Pur- 
chasing. In the smaller exchanges these, of course, are 
collected together and often one man will handle two or 
three departments, but as the business increases each 
one becomes an independent department in itself, subject 
only to the supervision of the general manager. 

The statistical department looks after the collecting of 
information, largely from the producing end. It gathers 
figures regarding the acres in fruit, number and kind 
of varieties and general facts that might be of interest 
either to the grower or to the management of the ex- 
change. The traffic department looks after the move- 
ments of the cars of fruit. It keeps records of the num- 
bers and names of the cars and follows them through 
to their destination. It also is instrumental in getting new 
commodity rates. It files claims for over-charges or for 
any carelessness due to the railroad's management. It 
handles, as far as possible, claims filed against the or- 
ganization and, in connection with the legal department, 
looks after the claims brought by individuals against the 
shipments which may be rejected. 

In a recent annual report of a Western exchange 
occurs the following statement regarding the work of 
the traffic department. i ' The exchange has filed with the 
railroad 6,626 claims for over-charge or damage to fruit 
in transit — 5,745 claims have been paid. And $180,428 
has been returned to the shippers, the cost of which is 
included in the selling expense at 4% cents a box." 
This exchange did a business last year of 28,186 cars 



194 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

of fruit. This, extending through a period of about 
eight months, would mean an average shipment of 3,500 
cars a month, or 100 cars and over a day. As it would 
require from 8 to 12 days for these cars to reach their 
destination, that would mean from 800 to 1,000 cars on 
the road at one time. The traffic department's business 
is to look after these cars and be able to advise the gen- 
eral management at any time where each car is in its 
progress along the railroad. 

The Legal Department is purely concerned with the 
business of the law in connection with the management 
of the exchange. It looks up questions of law. The in- 
terpretations of state laws, also national tariffs affect- 
ing its business and the attending of hearings before 
the Interstate Commerce Commission are also impor- 
tant duties. In the small exchanges this simply would 
constitute a lawyer from some well-known firm who is 
retained to handle this business, but in the larger organ- 
izations it is necessary to have a department for this 
work. 

An illustration of the power of the legal department 
perhaps can be cited in the following case: A Cali- 
fornia industry has its strongest competitor in a lemon 
district of southern Italy. The tariff up to the time 
of Taft's administration averaged $1 a crate on lemons. 
The railroad charged approximately $1 a crate freight 
from the Western coast to the Eastern markets. During 
Taft's administration, when the tariff was revised, 
through the efforts of a protective league, the legal de- 
partment of the Western exchanges was able to have 
the tariff raised to $1.50 a box for imported lemons. Im- 
mediately, the railroad handling the citrus fruit raised 



SELLING AGENCIES 195 

the freight on lemons to $1.50 a box, thus absorbing all 
the benefits of the tariff. 

The exchanges protested this action and immediately 
started a hearing before the Interstate Commerce Com- 
mission. Upon all of the lemons shipped to the East, 
the extra freight had to be paid, but this was done nnder 
protest and receipts taken for every package. The legal 
department fought this case through the court and in 
the Interstate Commerce Commission for two years. It 
was finally settled in favor of the fruit exchange. As 
a result of this one decision $343,744 was returned to the 
growers from the railroads on the excess freight for the 
two years. Only strong, well-organized exchanges doing 
a large business could afford the expense of fighting a 
continental shipping organization. 

Field Organization Department has to do entirely with 
the producing side of the fruit. It looks after the in- 
terests of the producer. It has experts to advise the 
members regarding the care of the orchard, pruning, 
etc. And when it comes to the packing of the fruit it 
supervises this so as to insure uniformity in both grade 
and pack. The field organization department is one 
of the oldest departments and one of the most necessary. 
It was early found that unless packs were uniform and 
put up in a systematic way the buyers had no assur- 
ance that the label on one package would mean the same 
as the label on another. Hence the development of this 
department was found necessary in order to insure uni- 
formity in the fruit, and to enable the organization to 
guarantee its pack. 

Advertising Department is more or less of a recent 
venture. Exchanges set aside a certain sum of money 



196 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

each year for advertising and have found that it pays 
to advertise fruit, as well as a pure food manufacturer 
finds that it pays to advertise his particular food. The 
business of advertising is as important to the fruit- 
selling business as it is in manufacturing. In almost 
every paper and magazine of consequence will be found 
advertised the brands of oranges or the sun-cured raisins 
grown on the Pacific Coast. The Southern states grow- 
ing quantities of vegetables or fruit have also resorted to 
various means of advertising. The Eastern states have 
done this only in a limited way, but are gradually com- 
ing to realize the importance of this branch of the in- 
dustry. 

Selling Department of exchanges is probably the most 
important division of the work. Selling agents have to 
be stationed in the larger cities of the East and, in 
some cases, in the foreign markets as well. Each one 
of these agents is advised of the contents of each ware- 
house in the local organization; how much fruit there 
is to be disposed of ; about what time it should be placed 
on the market ; and where prices are pre-determined by 
the management of the exchange, these are also given to 
the sales agents. The larger exchanges have their own 
salaried agents in the field. Some of the smaller ex- 
changes cooperate with the larger ones, making use of 
the information and knowledge of their organization. 
In still other cases some of them sell altogether through 
subsidiary organizations which handle only that part of 
the work. The methods of selling will be taken up in 
detail later. 

Purchasing Department. — The last department which 
the exchanges have subdivided themselves into is what 



SELLING AGENCIES 197 

might be termed a purchasing department. This, in 
many cases, is done by the managing office or under his 
direct supervision. In other instances they have a reg- 
ular purchasing department. This department looks 
after the contracting of all kinds of supplies for the 
producer, such as boxes, packages, spraying materials, 
fertilizers and chemicals of various kinds. In one or 
two instances such a department is a subsidiary organiza- 
tion of the regular exchange. It is sometimes a stock 
company, the stock being owned largely by the members 
of the exchange. In such cases it would be run inde- 
pendently of the general management. These depart- 
ments are highly desirable because, by contracting far 
enough ahead to meet the needs of the growers, consider- 
able money can be saved by buying in large quantities. 
On the other hand, the producer can always buy his 
supplies through the exchange, thereby insuring the 
correct packages or other farm supplies. He can usually 
get them at a cost much less than if he had to contract 
or buy them at wholesale. One Western exchange has a 
subsidiary organization for the purchasing department. 
This is a stock company and pays dividends to the stock- 
holders. Their aggregate business per year averages 
about $2,000,000. 

Details of Exchange Management. — In the larger or- 
ganizations each local exchange is provided with a ware- 
house. In all of these local exchanges that have their own 
warehouses the fruit is brought in by each grower and is 
there graded and stored. In some cases the fruit is 
packed in the producer 4 packing-house and no central 
one is maintained. In these cases, however, the packing 
is done by men under the direction and instruction of 



193 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

the management of the exchange and not by the indi- 
vidual grower. In the case of the more perishable fruits, 
like strawberries, and occasionally peaches and apricots, 
they are packed by the individual grower under the 
supervision of the exchange. Inspectors are provided 
that open and inspect a certain per cent of the pack- 
ages that are brought into the warehouse. If any are 
found not up to the standard they are returned or re- 
packed at the expense of the producer. In this way the 
management is able to maintain a standard pack. 

Where warehouses are maintained it is necessary to 
keep a foreman to look after the fruit during the busy 
part of the year. When each grower brings in his fruit 
the foreman receives it and stores it away in some spe- 
cial place. He then makes out a receipt for this fruit in 
triplicate, stating the grower's name, the varieties and 
number of boxes or packages sent in. The grower is 
given one of these, one is sent to the manager at the 
central office and the third is put on the files at the 
warehouse. This receipt is kept by the producer for 
references and also to check up returns when final set- 
tlements are made. 

Where there are a number of local warehouses con- 
nected with the central exchange this enables the man- 
ager to have at all times before him a complete manifest 
of the contents of all of the different warehouses. This 
information is sent by the general manager to each of 
the selling agents. When an order is received at the 
central office for a car of fruit the manager looks over 
his files and determines which warehouse can best load 
out the shipment. He then wires the foreman of the 
local exchange instructing him to load so many cars 



SELLING AGENCIES 199 

of so many varieties and grades in each. The foreman 
carries out these instructions and makes a bill of lading 
to the railroad for shipment direct to the buyer or to 
the place of consignment. A copy of the bill of lading 
is forwarded to the general manager's office and, if the 
case happens to be a sale that is already arranged, this 
is forwarded to the agent in the city who has made the 
sale. That agent then turns over the goods upon their 
arrival to the purchaser, collects the money and returns 
it to the general manager. 

Every so often, in some cases once a week and in other 
cases once a month, these receipts are totaled up and 
the flat tax which goes to pay the expenses of the ex- 
change deducted; the balance is distributed among the 
various local exchanges. The managing officer of the lo- 
cal exchange then distributes to the individual growers 
whatever their particular brand of fruit sells for. This 
does not constitute a pooling of the fruit of different grow- 
ers, but the fruit of each individual is sold separately, 
and returns are made separately, so no one loses his 
identity in any way. It is also a fact that the local ex- 
changes do not lose their identity by combining with 
the larger organizations. For example, two labels are 
used on each package. The name of the local organization 
on one end and of the larger exchange on the other. 

Benefits of Cooperation. — Cooperative fruit-selling 
organizations have been envolved to meet a particular 
need, and while they have been instrumental in increas- 
ing the price of many different kinds of fruit to the 
producer, this has been brought about by the increase 
of the quality of the fruit, rather than by the boosting 
of the prices. In the second place, they have decreased 



200 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

the cost of distributing the fruit to the consumer be- 
cause of the greater efficiency in handling the market- 
ing at selling end. There is no longer any question but 
what cooperative fruit-selling associations are a desir- 
able institution and in many places an absolute necessity. 

All of the fruit growers on the Pacific Coast will say 
that were it not for their methods of standardizing the 
packages and being able to guarantee these to the 
Eastern buyers, they would never have been able to 
develop the fruit industry on the Pacific Coast. While 
the organizations have not always proved a financial suc- 
cess this was to be expected, because they represented a 
new industry and the methods and details of manipula- 
tion had to be gradually worked out to fit the needs of 
each different locality. 

The benefits of cooperation in fruit selling can be 
more or less definitely summed up under the following 
heads: (1) They enable the small grower to ship in car- 
lots. (2) They distribute the crop to prevent congestion 
upon the market. (3) They have enabled growers to 
establish standard brands. (4) They have made possible 
better business methods in handling the produce. (5) 
They make possible the use of less important varieties of 
fruits. (6) They allow better equipment for handling 
the crop. (7) They give an incentive for better care of 
the orchard. (8) They make a better market stability. 

There are also, as might be expected, a few difficulties 
in the workings of the cooperative organizations. Some 
of these are more theoretical than practical, but still there 
is a more or less well-founded objection to the fruit- 
selling organizations. One objection usually advanced is 
that independent growers get the benefit. That is, people 



SELLING AGENCIES 201 

who are outside of the organizations reap the increased 
prices that are maintained by the exchanges. That is an 
inducement for narrow-minded men to stay outside of 
the organization. In some cases, prices have been ad- 
vanced by the associations and the- independent growers 
have reaped the result. In other cases, where jobbers 
and commission houses handle the fruit of certain sec- 
tions, they purposely inflated prices to deter men from 
becoming members of the exchange or to induce those 
already members to withdraw and weaken the exchange. 

Another difficulty often set forth is that of keeping 
the quality of the fruit up to standard. Some years the 
different fruit sections might have a poor crop and gen- 
eral climatic conditions make the entire yield of lower 
grade. In such cases it is particularly difficult to keep 
a standard pack and grade from year to year. However, 
this is obviated largely by the guarantee which organiza- 
tions are able to maintain, and the. buyers knowing that 
if the fruit is off standard, they can demand a rebate or 
a decrease in price paid for the goods. Another diffi- 
culty is in general crop failures. This is only true 
where the organizations cover limited territory. If a 
local exchange representing one fruit-growing section has 
an entire crop failure, this would leave the exchange 
with practically no work to do for the whole year. 
"Where the locals are combined into a central exchange 
covering a large territory, this is not a valued objection 
against the organization, because no large area in fruit 
production can possibly have an entire crop failure in 
one year. 

The old objection and the one usually advanced is 
that of jealousy, envy and lack of confidence. While 



202 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

this is still true in many places in the small exchanges, 
the conditions are such that the producing men have 
become broader in their views and are able to put more 
confidence in the men who handle or administrate their 
business for them. This is as absolutely necessary in 
the fruit industry as it is in any line of manufacturing 
or mercantile business. The old idea of forming a local 
exchange and employing one of their own members to 
officiate or administrate the business and pay him a 
salary which will probably exceed anything made by a 
great many of the members off of their fruit, led, of 
course, to many critical remarks and lack of confidence 
on the part of their manager. This is only petty jealousy 
and constitutes no valid reason why the exchange need 
be looked down upon. 

Another difficulty set forth in some places is of the 
monopolistic tendencies of the fruit organizations, claim- 
ing that they are in a class covered by the anti-trust or 
Sherman Law. This has gone so far that, in one or two 
states, the members of certain exchanges have carried the 
business into the Supreme Court in an attempt to nul- 
lify certain obligations or contracts entered into by 
members of the exchange, on the grounds of its opposi- 
tion to the Sherman Trust Law. This has been given 
at various times as a valid objection to fruit organiza- 
tions. It has been pretty definitely established, however, 
that a market for any fruit product as perishable as 
most of that grown in the United States, can never be 
monopolized because of the perishability of the goods 
handled. 



CHAPTER X 

SELLING METHODS 

There are various ways by which exchanges do the 
selling of fruit, depending largely upon the size of the 
exchange, kind of fruit to be sold, methods of distribu- 
tion, etc. Among the more important ways may be men- 
tioned the following: (1) Special salesmen under the 
management of the organization. (2) Track sales. (3) 
F. 0. B. sales. (4) On consignment. (5) Shipment, 
bill of lading attached. (6) Auctions. (7) Special re- 
tail of private markets. (8) Other agencies which in- 
clude the commission houses, jobbers, selling exchanges 
and fruit-distributing companies. 

The first method in which special salesmen are em- 
ployed is supposed to be the best because regular sal- 
aried agents of the company call upon the trade from 
time to time and solicit their business for the fruit they 
have to sell. As a matter of fact the special salesmen 
are becoming less and less and, as time goes on, will 
probably be superseded by some of the other methods. 

As exchanges begin to multiply and grow more numer- 
ous the commission house business will gradually fall 
off. A conservative estimate, which was recently made, 
states that the amount of fruit handled by the commis- 
sion men has decreased 50% during the past five or six 
years. The special salesmen have been partly responsi- 

203 



204 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

ble for that. On the other hand, the smaller exchanges 
are not able to hire a salesman throughout the whole 
year, so various methods have been devised to elim- 
inate this large expense. It was also found that these 
agents were more or less competing against other ex- 
changes handling the same kind of fruit, and that this 
would eventually become one of the difficulties of coop- 
eration. So immediately a move was started to have 
certain standard selling agencies represent a number of 
different exchanges. This resulted finally in the estab- 
lishing of several distributing associations, of which 
more will be said later. 

Track sales and f. o. b. sales are very closely related. 
Track sales are usually considered as sold on the track 
in which the fruit is produced, or in other words, the 
nearest shipping point. An f. o. b. sale means free on 
board cars at any point designated, hence a track sale 
and an f. o. b. sale may mean the same condition. It 
is undoubtedly a desirable way of selling fruit on the 
track at the point in which it is produced, but this can 
only be handled under certain peculiar conditions. In 
the first place, general markets must be such that buyers 
are willing to go into the field and bid on fruit which 
may be sold at the traj3k. This further means that only 
in large producing sections where a good many cars are 
shipped daily can buyers afford to place agents at these 
producing points. 

Some fruit-growing sections, especially favored by 
good shipping facilities or a little better quality of 
fruit, often attract buyers where other sections would 
have to send out their salesmen and hustle for the trade. 
Track sales, as a rule, give a little better returns than 



SELLING METHODS 205 

where shipments are made otherwise, especially are they 
better than the average consignment. The exchange 
management or salesmen can contract directly with the 
buyer, agreeing upon a price, and then there is no after 
difficulty from having the fruit rejected. Also the ex- 
change does not have to stand the expense of shipping 
the fruit or wait for the money after the fruit leaves 
the track. One large exchange, handling small fruit in 
Missouri, reported a general advance of strawberries of 
60 to 80 cents a crate, where they were sold on track, 
over that received when consigned. 

In the consignment of fruit the method is similar to 
that practiced by the old commission houses. In fact, 
many commission men make a practice of handling only 
carload consignments from exchanges. These consign- 
ments may also go through other routes like the auction 
companies or through a special selling agent allowing 
them to dispose of the fruit for what they can get. 
Consignments necessarily follow where the salesmen are 
not able to handle all the fruit and get orders for 
it before it reaches the consuming centers. "Where cars 
are shipped long distances they are often handled as 
' ' tramp cars ' ' ; that is, they are consigned to their agent 
in some of the Eastern cities. 

Points on the Pacific Coast enjoy, for the most part, 
a flat rate on freight tariffs to any point east of the 
Mississippi river. These cars are started off as tramps, 
and upon reaching St. Louis or other points where they 
cross to Eastern territories they are diverted according 
to the requirements or conditions of the market. For 
instance, a recent manager of an exchange reported the 
following : A carload of pears was consigned to Chicago 



206 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

from the Pacific Coast. When it reached this city it 
was found that the markets were glutted for this kind 
of pear. It was then diverted to Philadelphia, but on 
reaching there the Eastern agent thought by continuing 
them to New York the growers could realize a higher 
price than the Philadelphia market afforded. It was 
again diverted and, on reaching New York, was sold at 
an advance of 50 cents a package over anything offered 
in Chicago or Philadelphia. In this way large over- 
supplies or deficiencies are avoided. 

Where consignments are made to regular commission 
houses they are usually investigated by the management 
of the exchange and are often required to give bonds for 
the proper fulfillment of their business contracts. Such 
commission houses usually work on a lesser margin than 
where small shipments are handled. Where the agent 
of the exchange is also located in the city in which the 
commission men do business, he is much more apt to 
do his best for the interest of the fruit growers than he 
would otherwise. 

Another method is to ship fruit with the bill of lad- 
ing attached. This is followed out by a number of well 
established exchanges which have no agents. They 
do their selling through the general office by means of 
correspondence. This is the common method of the 
cured fruit exchanges or the various almond or walnut 
exchanges, where the fruit is capable of being kept for 
a little longer period of time. 

One California exchange found that it was not neces- 
sary to have any selling force at all after the first year 
of the organization. Its method of selling could be 
illustrated by the following. The commodity is such 



SELLING METHODS 207 

that it will keep for some little time. The directors set 
a price for which the product should be offered to the 
trade. When this price was agreed upon and the esti- 
mates of the oncoming crop tabulated, they sent this 
information to all of the large buying houses and job- 
bers in the East, asking them to reserve such quantities 
as they saw fit. 

They did this fully one month ahead of the time at 
which the fruit was harvested. The buyers in the East- 
ern markets, knowing that the price had been fixed and 
they could not get the product at any other place for a 
less price, immediately wired or wrote the exchange to 
reserve such quantities as they thought they would need 
for the year's supply. This particular exchange esti- 
mated its entire crop at 2,000 tons. By the end of the 
first week, after the buyers had been advised of the 
prices set, all of the crop had been bargained for and 30 
carloads in excess of what it could supply. These, of 
course, were bonafide orders and were booked in ac- 
cordance with the way in which they were received. 
Those coming in first were filled first, and if there were 
not enough to go around the ones ordering last were 
compelled to take short measures. 

When the product was shipped to the Eastern market 
it was consigned direct to the buyers. Along with the 
bill of lading went a sight draft attached, covering the 
price of the contents of the car. A copy of this bill was 
also sent to the bank through which the buyers were 
doing business. The railroad then acted as agent to pro- 
tect the sellers. Before the buyer could gain possession 
of the carload he was compelled to go to the bank and 
take up the attached bill, which then became a sight 



208 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

draft. After being paid to the bank it became a re- 
ceipted bill upon presentation of which the railroad 
would deliver the shipment. In this way there was no 
credit extended and the exchange did not have to wait for 
its money. This method also prevented unscrupulous busi- 
ness men from beating the exchanges out of their money. 

In 1914 this exchange did over $450,000 worth of 
business, and during that period lost less than $23 on 
uncollectable accounts. In the last annual report from 
another exchange, the organization did a year 's business 
of $29,434,402.40. Out of this sum it sustained a loss 
totaling $355 in bad or uncollectable accounts, making a 
total of .524% loss in bad debts. This method of fill- 
ing orders by means of a sight draft attached to the bill 
of lading accounts largely for the very small per cent 
in losses. This same method is used also by other ex- 
changes. 

It is only possible to do business in this way when the 
exchange is able to stand behind any price it may set or 
guarantee any pack it may undertake to sell. When any 
buyer gets a package of fruit, knowing that if it is not 
up to standard he may return it and get his money back, 
he is perfectly willing to invest without first examining 
the contents of the package. No consumer in any town 
or city would think of. trading for a moment with a 
grocery store which would not take back goods which 
were not satisfactory or not up to expectation. Hence, 
it is only reasonable to say that fruit growers must ex- 
pect the same conditions if they want to demand the 
highest price and the respect of the consuming public. 
It is needless to say that this is one of the hardest prob- 
lems which exchanges have to contend with and one 



SELLING METHODS 209 

which, calls for all of the ingenuity human brains can 
devise to keep and maintain a standard of efficiency. 

Auctions. — A method of disposing of fruit which has 
very recently become quite popular is by means of the 
auction. These auctions are in no wise connected with 
the producing end, but are strictly a selling organiza- 
tion. There is one, sometimes two, doing business in 
every large city of the United States. For the most part 
they are corporations usually of the profit-sharing kind, 
their main object being to handle fruit on a basis of gross 
receipts for the fruit sold. They are not materially dif- 
ferent from the commission men except in the very large 
business that is handled. 

To dispose of fruit through an auction company it is 
necessary first to belong to some exchange or organiza- 
tion. As an individual it is practically impossible to sell 
fruit through these auctions. They handle very large 
quantities and mostly from the larger exchanges. Their 
argument in favor of the auction is quick action in the 
selling operation. Of the more perishable fruits, this is 
likely to be to the best interest of the shipper. They 
work on a very much smaller commission than do the 
ordinary commission houses and are, at the present time, 
handling enormous quantities of fruit. Some of the 
more perishable fruit, like the deciduous kinds from the 
far West, also the imported lemons and a good deal of 
Porto Kican and other tropical fruits, are sold almost 
entirely in this way. 

The method of doing business with an auction com- 
pany would be about as follows: The carload of fruit 
is consigned to the agent of the exchange, and on the 
arrival of this car at its destination it is turned over to 



210 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



the auction company. Auctions never received the cars 
directly, but they are turned over to them by some au- 
thorized agent of the exchange. As soon as a car of 
fruit is started to the agent, the business manager of the 
central exchange or the sales department manager makes 
a manifest of the contents of the car, giving the name of 
each individual who had fruit in the car, the quantity, 




Fig. 110.— ARRANGING SHIPMENTS IN THE WAREHOUSE 
OF THE AUCTION COMPANY 



variety and grade. This manifest is forwarded to the 
agent and a copy of it turned over to the auction company. 
The auction company then proceeds in one or two 
ways, some take samples from the fruit when it ar- 
rives and sell entirely from the samples. Others make 
up a catalog (Fig. 112), and the fruit is inspected in 
the warehouse or in the car, and then bid off according to 
the statements in the catalog. "Where these manifests 
arrive a day ahead of time they can be cataloged and 
ready, for the auction at the next morning. Cars that 
have arrived during the afternoon and night of any one 



SELLING METHODS 211 

day are usually sold on the next morning's auction. 
They are usually put up in lots of 10 or 20 packages, 
and if any individual happens to have less than a lot 
of 10 they will be auctioned off separately, allowing each 
man's fruit to be sold by itself. 

Most auction companies provide regular warehouses 
in which the fruit can be handled. They also have con- 






Fig. 111.— FRUIT SAMPLES ARRANGED IN THE WAREHOUSE 
OF AN AUCTION COMPANY 

venient auction rooms. These are arranged something 
like the seats in a theatre (Fig. 113). Each member be- 
longing to the auction company is assigned to a seat and, 
when anything is put up that he is interested in, he goes 
and bids in as much as desired, as each article comes up 
for sale. This makes everything open and above board, and 
gives a chance for the public and the owner to go in and 
watch his goods auctioned off, and gives an opportunity 
for the agent of the company to check up. There is not 
the possibility of doing the rebate work that sometimes oc- 
curs in the other lines of fruit selling. 



212 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 




Fig. 112.— CATALOGS OF AUCTION SALES 

Most of the auction companies pay the freight, switch- 
ing car service, demurrage, and incidental charges, and 
deduct the amount from the gross proceeds of the sale 
of the goods that are shipped them. A check covering 
the net proceeds of each shipment is mailed to the man- 




Fig. 113.— FRUIT AUCTION ROOM, NEW YORK CITY 



SELLING METHODS 213 

ager of the exchange within 24 hours after the sale. 
For the service rendered, the auction companies get their 
pay in two ways : first, they charge the people who are 
dealing with them a price of 5 cents a package for the 
purpose of doing business through the auction. This 
goes to defray the expense, discount, collection, and of 
guaranteeing the sale. They also receive from 2 to 3% 
of the gross sales from the shippers for handling the 
goods. Thus, the buyer as well as the seller contributes 
a certain amount to the maintenance of the auction busi- 
ness. Every concern, that is engaged in the auction 
business has a set of rules whereby it governs the people 
who do the buying. A copy of the rules governing the 
sales of one of the better known companies is added, so 
that the reader may see more clearly the method of hand- 
ling the fruit: 

TEEMS OF SALE 
United Fruit Auction Company of Detroit, Michigan 

To those having established credit, bills are due and payable 
the second day following date of sale, and must be paid at such 
time or no further credit will be extended. 

Those NOT having credit must make a deposit, before sale, of 
FIVE DOLLARS or more at the office, as a guarantee of good 
faith, or bid will not be recognized at the Auction. 

All goods are sold as they are and where they stand, with ab- 
solutely no discounts or rebates. 

Samples are selected at random, or as they come, with no effort 
to conceal quality or condition. 

Buyers are invited to thoroughly inspect fruit before sale, but 
are requested to leave same in condition as found. 

Sampling is Positively Prohibited. 

Ten packages will be the minimum quantity that will be sold or 
invoiced to any one buyer unless the line being sold contains less 
than said number. 



2U MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

All goods must be removed immediately after the close of the 
sale, and if not so removed within three hours, goods will be de- 
livered at the buyer's expense. 

Under no circumstances will buyers be allowed to re-sell goods 
on the floor of the auction room. 

Every package sold subject to our usual terminal or warehouse 
charge of 5 cents per package. 

The auctions are made use of by the large exchanges 
in several ways. In the first place they get quick ac- 




:: ty. 



Fig. 113a.— DELIVERING AFTER THE SALES 

tion for the more perishable goods, even where there are 
special salesmen endeavoring to hunt markets. • Cars 
that start out from their origin as "tramp cars" are 
always intended to be sold before they reach their 
destination. In case they still remain "tramp cars" 
until arriving in the larger market, they then must be 
disposed of. This always gives the exchanges a chance to 
get the fruit sold in a very quick and efficient manner. 

Exporters of fruit imported from Europe and from 
the other continents did not find it convenient to keep 



SELLING METHODS 215 

a sales force in this country. They simply have one 
agent and, by consigning everything to this agent, allow 
him to handle an enormous business through the auction 
companies. Even large organizations sell practically all 
of their imported fruits through the auction companies. 
In a like manner most of the fruit that is shipped from 





Fig. 114.— THE FREE CITY MARKET AT BOSTON, MASS. 

Many cities have similar free markets where produce may be sold as 

it comes in from the farm. 

the United States to England, especially fresh fruit, is 
sold at auction abroad. 

Their method of doing business is somewhat different 
than the auctions in the United States, in that it is 
more strict and has less publicity. Fruit that is im- 
ported from the United States is taken to the dock and 
samples opened up for inspection. Most of the auction- 
ing is done in the warehouse, on the docks. The fruit 
is sold in barrel or box lots, the auctioning lasting from 
10 o'clock in the morning until the day's shipments are 
sold out. There are four or five auctioneers taking turns 



216 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

of 20 minutes each. They are paid on a commission basis 
for the amount of fruit they sell. 

No one in England except licensed buyers are per- 
mitted in the auction room. They have to pay certain 
fees to belong to the company and to have the privilege 
of buying. Each one's record, his bank references and 
reliability must be certified to before he can become a 
member. This apparently is necessary in order that the 
auction company may guarantee their sales. They are 
supposed to remit within 24 hours after the sale and 
then collect from the buyers cash in 5 to 10 days. If 
buyers were allowed indiscriminately to bid in the fruit 
there would of necessity be considerable chance for 
buyers to default, and then the auction company would 
be the loser. Hence only regular licensed members can 
buy fruit at the auction of the foreign markets. 

Special Retail. — This is a system of disposing of fruit 
that has only recently become of any material impor- 
tance. The tendency is to eliminate the middleman 
wherever possible and deal direct with the consumer. 
To do this several methods have been made use of. 
The most common is the parcel post. Many of the more 
perishable fruits can now be packed in special cartons 
and sent through the mail direct to the consumer. Some 
of the less perishable kinds of fruit and their by^ 
products, such as prunes, dried fruit, nuts, etc., enjoy 
an especially low postal rate, hence there are possibili- 
ties in disposing of large quantities of fruit in this 
manner. 

Many of the various express companies have followed 
the example set by the Government in the use of the 
parcel post, by establishing low express rates intending 



SELLING METHODS 



217 



to favor special retail. One company lias, in addition 
to the above, attempted to help sales by finding markets 
for the produce. This is done by organizing family pur- 
chasing clubs in the larger cities, and furnishing such 
clubs with prices and kinds of produce that can be de- 
livered. This furnishes an outlet for certain growers who 
are favorably located and care to list their goods with an 
express company. This plan is reported as working 





Fig. 115.— PEDDLING FRUIT IN ONE OF THE TENEMENT 
SECTIONS OF NEW YORK CITY 



successfully in several cities and its prospect for doing 
an unlimited business depends almost entirely on the 
skill in perfecting the buying agencies. 

Certain progressive fruit growers have for years en- 
joyed special retail markets such as hotels, summer re- 
sorts, club houses, etc. This method is now being en- 
larged upon and cooperative fruit organizations are 
supplying direct many such places which were previ- 



- 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



« uidled by wholesalers or commission houses. 

Such mai . - usually highly specialized and call for 

rait. Many ations are well quali- 

rndle This trade, as their goods are standardized 

and their ability to deliver the right produce at the 

as the respect and confidence of the patrons. 

Other Agencies. — There are various other channels 

through which fruit may pass to the consumer, repre- 




Ffe lift,— FRUIT 5 rANDS OX THE STREET NEAR 
GARBAGE BARRELS 



sented for the most part as a side issue of some large 
produce-handling organizations. Some of the more com- 
mon of these that might be mentioned are the produce 
jobbers, the selling exchanges and the fruit distributing 
companies. Many of these are large, well-organized 
companies and do a tremendous business in food sup- 
plies. As some of these agencies will be considered sep- 
arately later on. their method of handling the fruit 
may be here omitted. Suffice it to say that these or- 



SELLING METHODS 



219 




Fig. 117.— BUYING FROM PUSH-CARTS— EAST SIDE, 
NEW YORK CITY 




Fig. 118.— A NEW YORK SIDEWALK FRUIT MARKET, 
BOTH WHOLESALE AND RETAIL 



220 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



ganizations are not interested in production and only 
concern themselves in problems of distribution. 

Retailing. — This is the last step in which the fruit 
passes into the hands of the consumer. The retailer is 
the one next to the producer who is most vitally inter- 
ested, as he pays the bills and commissions to all the 




Fig. 119.— A SPECIAL RETAIL MARKET 



middlemen. Retailing is the most expensive part of 
all the processes of distribution, because it involves the 
element of service which the city buyer demands. The 
fruit in itself may be* comparatively cheap but the ex- 
pense of getting it to the consumer is often large. The 
crowded conditions in the cities, the reluctance with 
which the average commuter carries home packages, and 
the lack of judgment and foresight displayed by the 
average housewife in buying supplies, all contribute to 
the cost of service. This is a difficulty that can only be 
remedied by cooperation among the retailers. At present 



SELLING METHODS 



221 




Fig. 120. 



-A SIDEWALK USED AS A FRUIT -.MARKET. 
DECIDEDLY UNSANITARY 



there is no strong incentive for such cooperation and it 
will be necessary for the buyers to take the initiative. 

There is a branch of the fruit retail trade which has 
to do with the street stands, booths, pushcarts, etc., 
Which cannot be passed over without a word of com- 
ment. These doubtless fill some definite need in the 
economy of distribution, but their methods of handling 




Fig. 121. 



-FRUIT MARKET UNDER WILLIAMSBURG BRIDGE, 
NEW YORK CITY 



222 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



the fruit are often open to objection. Such stands are 
usually out in the open, exposed to the dust and dirt of 
the city streets, the fruit is polished and handled with 
dirty hands and is in many ways unsanitary. Some 
cities have inspection laws covering their fruit stands 
but, mostly, they are operated with entire disregard to 
approved sanitary conditions. 




Fig. 122.— A LESS OFFENSIVE FRUIT STAND 



CHAPTER XI 

SPECIAL FRUIT ORGANIZATIONS 

Fruit Distributors. — During the past five or six years 
a new type of fruit organizations lias appeared which has 
to do exclusively with the selling or distributing of the 
fruit. Some of these take the title of exchange but 
most of them are known as distributing associations. 
These kind of organizations have been the outgrowth 
of definite efforts to simplify the methods of distribution. 
The old plan where each exchange attempted to do its 
own selling was found to be cumbersome and too ex- 
pensive. As the number of exchanges increased it was 
found that they were competing with each other in 
selling the fruit. This called for higher priced sales- 
men and various additional expenses. Later, many local 
associations combined and attempted to sell the output 
through a central office. This worked well for a Avhile 
and, at present, the bulk of the fruit is being handled in 
this way. Now, when there is scattered through the 
Central and Western states over 300 fruit organizations, 
this method of distributing was again getting cumber- 
some. Thus special distributing organizations have re- 
sulted. 

California Fruit Distributors. — This was the first ef- 
fort to combine a number of exchanges for the exclusive 
selling of the fruit. Delegates from the various organiza- 
tions formed a separate corporation. The selling forces 

223 



224 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

of all the exchanges were combined thus reducing the cost 
and increasing the efficiency. This organization is now 
handling all of the fruit for 15 companies comprising 
about 15,000 cars annually. 

While it may appear to the casual thinker that this 
system of distribution complicates matters, it in reality 
simplifies them. The exchange can pay more attention 
to the production of fruit, and when it is ready for sale 
turns it over to the distributors. The delegates from 
the various exchanges become directors in the distribut- 
ing association, hence the management is always within 
the control of the producing organizations. The system 
of distributing unifies the methods of handling the fruit 
in so far as the marketing is concerned. Uniform rules 
regarding the harvesting and packing are established, 
and instead of having several different grades or brands 
one or two set standards are established. This larger 
quantity of fruit handled attracts attention on the 
larger markets, enables better methods in advertising 
and reduces the cost of selling the fruit. 

North Pacific Fruit Distributors. — At present this 
organization represents the largest distributing associ- 
ation extant. The four states of Oregon, Washington, 
Idaho and Montana comprise the territory covered by 
the association. All of these states have had active fruit- 
growing organizations for years, some of them having 
a membership running up into the thousands. These 
organizations represented an industry approximating 
250 millions. The great extent of the business handled, 
and the fact that the bulk of the sales must be made 
in other states than their own, made competition in the 
selling end uncomfortably keen. Progressive leaders of 



SPECIAL FRUIT ORGANIZATIONS 225 

the business were constantly looking for means to elim- 
inate or at least simplify the trouble of selling. 

The first step towards the organization of a central 
selling agency of Northwestern fruit was taken at the 
meeting in Prosser, Wash., in January, 1911, and com- 
mittees made up of representatives of the different fruit 
districts worked in conjunction with the only cooper- 
ative non-profit fruit organization then in existence in 
the Northwest; namely, the Yakima Valley Fruit 
Growers' Association. They worked out a set of by- 
laws at a series of meetings held in the fall of 1911 and 
the spring of 1912. These different plans as worked out 
at these meetings were brought to Spokane in November, 
1912, during the National Apple Show, at which time 
the distributors were organized. This is a purely mutual 
corporation without capital stock, organized under the 
non-profit sharing laws of the State of Washington. 
The association now comprises nine central exchanges, 
composed of nearly 100 local associations which in turn 
are made up of over 7,000 members, all fruit growers. 
The Board of Directors consists of nine members, one 
from each of the central exchanges. 

The first step this selling organization took was to 
draft a set of rules for all the local associations to grade 
and pack their fruit by. This immediately unified all the 
grades and packs of fruit and permitted a guarantee of 
standard packs. The carrying out of this part of the 
work was left to the various producing organizations. 
Inspectors were maintained by the distributors to keep 
the grades and packs up to standard. The second step 
was to organize a selling force that could handle the large 
output. This was done by establishing agents in the 



226 MODERN' FRUIT MARKETING 

big markets of the East and in Europe. In some cases 
these agents were salaried men in the pay of the asso- 
ciation, in other cases they were general produce handlers 
who were willing to accept the exclusive agency for the 
association for a given territory. In a few cases they 
simply affiliated with some other exchange already hav- 
ing an established territory. In this manner 76 agents 
were established the first year in the various Eastern 
markets to look after the interests of the association. 

It then became necessary to provide money to carry 
on the business of selling until returns began to come in. 
Banks were asked to make loans. They responded loy- 
ally and, in the two years, 1913 and 1914, loaned over 
$1,000,000 for the handling of the business and for ad- 
vances to the growers through the sub-exchanges. These 
loans were all returned at the close of the season, being 
paid out of the charges on each package for selling the 
fruit. Gradually a surplus working capital is being ac- 
cumulated which, in time, will place the distributors on 
a permanent cash basis. 

The cost of selling was to be provided for by a flat 
tax on each package sold. For the first year this was 
started on the basis of 5 cents a box for apples, 4 cents 
a box for pears, 2y 2 cents per crate for prunes and l 1 /* 
cents per box for peaches. The surplus over and above 
the actual cost of selling was held as a contingent fund 
against the beginning of the next year's operations. 

The next thing to arrange for was to get a forecast of 
the amount of fruit to be sold, the varieties, grades, etc. 
The methods of collecting this data has been described 
in a previous chapter. The important point, however, 
was to have this information available several weeks be- 



SPECIAL FRUIT ORGANIZATIONS 227 

fore the harvesting' began so the agents could get ad- 
vance sales. In this manner several hundred carloads 
were sold before any fruit was harvested. This associa- 
tion, handling all the different kinds of fruit as well as 
vegetables, was able to keep the selling force active 
throughout the year, thus maintaining a permanent sell- 
ing organization. 

The sales policy was developed along rather broad 
lines. The prevailing custom had been to start off the 
season with as high a price as the market would stand 
and then drop as it became necessary to move the fruit. 
The distributing association did not do this, but instead 
started the season rather low and maintained a uniform 
price throughout the year. This inspired confidence 
among the buyers and they were not afraid to stock 
up heavy early in the season. The advance sales were 
moved out as the fruit became available. The cars were 
loaded with mixed varieties and grades, according to 
the wishes of the buyers. 

Fruit that was not sold when ready to ship was either 
placed in storage or started East as tramp cars, trusting 
that the agents would be able to place them by the time 
they reached their destination. Such tramp cars would 
be consigned to some Eastern agent. A complete mani- 
fest of the contents of the car was mailed to each agent 
with instructions to sell at the market or a definite price 
might be set by the sales manager. If the car was not 
sold by the time of its arrival it would be placed in 
storage or disposed of through the auctions. 

Results of the First Year. — The selling was com- 
menced in July, 1913, and the first year a total of 6,208 
cars were handled. The business comprised nearly 



228 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

3,000,000 packages exclusive of the vegetables, return- 
ing to the distributors over $3,000,000 net. This fruit 
was shipped to 243 cities in 38 states, to 33 cities in six 
Canadian Provinces and 179 carloads were exported to 
16 cities in 10 European countries. Of the 3,958 cars of 
fruit shipped, 54% started on f. o. b. order and 45% 
as tramp cars. Of these, 83% were delivered on f. o. b. 
basis, the balance being consigned or sold through the 
auctions.. This means that about 90% of the fruit that 
was started as tramps was sold by the agents before ar- 
rival at the Eastern destination. In previous years, 
when handled by the separate exchanges, it was estimated 
that less than 30% of the fruit was sold on an f. o. b. 
basis. 

As one might expect, this organization had its diffi- 
culties. Cars were rejected. Some met with accident in 
transit. Some of the packs and grades were not up to 
standard. Claims were filed against the concern that 
had to be debated in court. But through it all, quite a 
remarkable record was made for the first year. What 
the final outcome will be time alone will tell. It is likely 
that some of the local associations will withdraw. Some 
of the details may have to be re-organized but the basic 
fundamental principles of the plan are correct. 

In the first annual report of the organization is given 
a list of 17 reasons why the distributing association is 
desirable for fruit growers of the Pacific Northwest. A 
part of these follow that the reader may draw his own 
conclusions. 

1. It places at the service of the grower a body of 
trained and experienced experts, better equipped and 
better informed than the buyers; it maintains a com- 



SPECIAL FRUIT ORGANIZATIONS 229 

prehensive and trustworthy system of gathering crop 
estimates and daily market reports at a cost of many 
thousand dollars, to adequately serve the grower ; it thus 
puts the grower in an advantageous position in his rela- 
tionship to the trade. 

2. It distributes the growers' fruits, by intelligent or- 
ganization, to all of the markets so as to neither over- 
supply nor under-supply any particular market, and 
provides an agency large enough to seek and find new 
markets as well as develop old ones. 

3. It markets the growers' fruit in an extensive but 
conservative and economical manner and without ruin- 
ous competition. 

4. It furnishes the grower with personal represent- 
atives in every important market center in America and 
Europe, and in fact, the world, wdiose first consideration 
is the growers' interest, who examine the fruit in transit, 
repair damages, and where necessary, protect the grower 
against improper demands for allowances, etc. 

5. It secures a uniform and dependable grade and 
pack of the fruit throughout every district — a thing of 
great value to the trade and, therefore, to the grower 
seeking the trade — and it is thereby enabled to back the 
brand of each district with a guarantee that will bring 
a higher price for the fruit than for other fruit outside 
of such a brand. 

6. It properly and scientifically advertises the grower's 
fruit and returns the full value of that advertising to 
the grower. 

7. It gives the grower the power, backed by the ex- 
clusive service of skilled legal, traffic and claim depart- 



230 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

ments, to secure justice and fair dealing in all instances 
from buyers, railroads, etc. 

8. It removes from the methods and practices of the 
fruit business the objectionable and obstructive features, 
the strength and influence of 7,000 united growers being 
vastly more effective than that of 7,000 individual dis- 
interested units. 

9. It gives the grower control of his own product from 
orchard to market, thus enabling him to secure the hand- 
ling of his fruit by the legitimate trade at an equitable 
cost. 

10. It can, by reason of its all-district representation, 
supply any quantity or any variety of any fruit to meet 
the most exacting and preemptory demands of the trade 
and thus avail the grower of the benefits to be derived 
from such special service 1 . 

North American Fruit Exchange. — This is one of the 
latest developments in the fruit-distributing business 
and represents a condition different from either of the 
other two distributing organizations mentioned. It is 
much more comprehensive in its nature, taking in a wider 
territory and handling a much wider range of products. 
Instead of being located in the producing centers, its 
headquarters is located in New York, the chief center 
of markets. It is really an exchange of exchanges. Or- 
ganized fruit-producing societies and large shippers con- 
trolling, a sufficient value of business can become mem- 
bers. This is a stock corporation, but only sufficient stock 
was issued to cover the actual operating expenses. It was 
organized in 1911, under the laws of the state of New 
Jersey, with a capital stock of $100,000. The privilege of 

1 From First Annual Report, North Pacific Fruit Distributors, 1913. 



SPECIAL FRUIT ORGANIZATIONS 231 

increasing this stock was provided for as conditions would 
warrant. The directors in the exchange are men from 
widely different sections ranging from Oregon to Florida. 

The kind of exchange that may become a member of 
this organization is without limit. Being located where 
the markets are, it becomes readily available as an ex- 
clusive agent for any of the other distributing societies 
or for affiliation with any of the other larger exchanges 
which already have their selling offices arranged for in 
the East. 

The great advantage argued in favor of the location of 
the exchange has been borne out by records of the past 
two or three years. The one great object of the exchange 
was to maintain an efficient selling force throughout the 
entire year, and thus reduce to a minimum the cost 
of selling the fruit. By this method exchanges operat- 
ing in the Pacific Northwest, in the Central and Southern 
states such as Texas, New Mexico, Colorado, etc., and 
also in the Southeastern states such as Florida and even 
outside of the United States in Cuba, and Porto Rico 
have become members of this organization. In this way 
the selling force has a large territory to draw from and 
handles almost every known kind of fruit. 

In the early spring the fruits from Florida and the 
Southwest come in and are handled by the organization. 
Later, the deciduous fruits from Georgia and from the 
other Southern states are taken up. Then as the season 
advances more of the Northern grown fruits appear until 
finally the apple, which lasts through the winter and 
into the spring, when fruits of the next season again 
appear. Thus highly and efficiently trained salesmen 
are available all the year around. The markets that 



232 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

demand large variety and kinds of fruits can be sup- 
plied through this one firm, and in every way it works 
to the interest of all concerned. 

In order to become a member of this selling organiza- 
tion it is necessary to execute a contract in favor of the 
North American Fruit Exchange for all or a certain 
per cent of the entire output of the local association. 
Then they must be supplied with data regarding va- 
rieties and kinds of fruit as far ahead of harvesting time 
as possible. The details of the selling are handled very 
much the same as of other organizations. 

The methods of selling the fruit are as varied as the 
conditions of the market demand. They have special 
salesmen to call upon the trade and arrange for deliveries 
ahead of time. They have a wide range of sales among 
the jobbing houses, who carry large supplies of the 
fruits which are handled through the smaller grocery 
and retail stores throughout the country. They also 
cater to special markets, large hotels, private trades, 
clubs, resorts, etc., and even strenuous efforts are being 
made to sell direct to the consumer. Advertising cam- 
paigns are being carried out through which the exchange 
advises the consuming public of the special qualities of 
various brands of fruit. They also maintain offices in 
Europe and in some of the South American countries 
to take care of trade in those places. Always the per- 
sonal representative of the organization looks after the 
interest of the fruit producers, hence there is much 
greater efficiency and more of the personal interest in 
the business at hand. 

Fruit Jobbers. — These people are dealers in food stuffs 
and represent a special class of produce handlers. The 



SPECIAL FRUIT ORGANIZATIONS 233 

buying and distributing of fruit is only a part of their 
work, but a part that is so important that it ought to be 
included in any discussion on the marketing of fruit. 
The great function of the jobbing houses is to supply 
food products to the retail grocery stores throughout the 
country. They are the food bankers of the country. 

The fruit jobbers collect foods from the four corners 
of the world and pass them along to the retail stores 
and through the retail stores to the consumer. The 
average grocery store could no more buy each of its 
many hundred brands of food products direct from the 
makers or growers than each producer could sell direct 
to the consumer, hence the jobbers storehouses serve as 
intermediaries between the producer and consumer. 

The jobbing houses have represented for years an 
organized industry that the average layman knows little 
or nothing about. They have their central organization, 
their branch houses, their buying field agents ; and have 
fitted into the needs of the country so closely that we are 
hardly aware of their existence. Their business repre- 
sents a sum of money equalling, if not exceeding, the 
fruit crop of the United States. 

Their methods of operating are not much different 
from those of any other business concern. Their agents 
are sent out into the field to contract supplies, sometimes 
two or three years ahead of time. They visit the various 
canning factories and arrange for so many thousand 
cases of canned goods. Sometimes they even furnish 
the seed to grow the vegetables, and occasionally have had 
to buy the canning factory to get the goods put up the 
way they are wanted. They visit the fruit-producing 
sections and contract for the fruit they want. They 



234 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

particularly handle enormous quantities of the various 
fruit byproducts. The great bulk of the f. o. b. sales 
made by fruit exchanges go to these jobbing houses. 
They keep watch of the importations and have their 
agents constantly at the auctions to keep the warehouses 
supplied from day to day. 

The commodities they handle are without number, 
and many of the articles of food consumed daily by the 
average individual have been prepared for him by the 
jobbers in ways he is little aware of. Our favorite 
brands of coffee, supposed to come direct from the grow- 
ers in the tropics, are usually cleaned, mixed, graded, and 
roasted in the warehouse of the jobbers in New York and 
Boston (Fig. 123). The tea from China and Ceylon, im- 
ported in great unsightly, crude packages, is put into 
usable and respectable looking packages before being 
passed along to the consumer. Olives from Spain and 
Italy are ungraded, unsized and packed in huge hogs- 
heads when imported. These are put through a rigid 
grading process. The best olives are stuffed and placed 
in American made bottles. The rest are sorted to size and 
color, and put into various packages according to their 
condition. 

The dates from Africa, the dried currants 2 from 
Greece, the cocoanuts from South America and spices 
from the tropics are all put through a cleaning process 
in the warehouse of the jobbers in this country. Few 
of the more intelligent of the consuming public would 
enjoy eating most of this imported fruit if they saw it 
before the jobbers made it over into presentable form. 
Most of the dates, figs and currants are washed, disin- 

2 Really a grape. 



SPECIAL FRUIT ORGANIZATIONS 



235 



fected and dried by the jobbers before being offered to 
the public. "Walnut meats are hand-brushed and then 
disinfected before re-packing. Cocoanuts are ground 
and shredded, spices re-cleaned, extracts refined in the 
jobbers' special warehouses. Our people have become so 




Fig. 123.— ROASTING COFFEE IN A NEW YORK JOBBING HOUSE 



accustomed to seeing foreign goods packed in good 
American packages that they have ceased to wonder at 
the wide knowledge of English the world over. 

Business Credit. — It will be worth while to digress 
here slightly to comment upon the credit system built 
up by the jobbing business. While capital must neces- 
sarily be represented, and often in a big way, the bulk 
of the monthly business is conducted entirely on credit, 



236 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

Take a specific product like canned tomatoes. The job- 
ber's agent goes out to the canning factory and contracts 
for 10,000 cases of tomatoes to be delivered at intervals 
of two weeks in car lots. The canning factory agent goes 
to the farmer and contracts a sufficient number of acres 
to supply the capacity of the factory. Agreeing to pay 
a certain per cent of the monthly deliveries and the bal- 
ance at the close of the season. 

In due time the tomatoes are grown and delivered at 
the factory. The factory sends out its first car with a 
bill for cash in 60 days. The jobbers receive the goods 
and immediately re-sell to the groceryman or retailers 
and bill them for 30 days cash. The grocery sells to 
the consumer with weekly cash payments. At the end 
of the week the consumer goes to the grocery store and 
pays his bill for the goods. At the end of the month 
the retailer pays his bill to the jobbing houses. Then 
the jobber remits to the canning company which, in 
turn, makes a payment to the grower. In this manner 
the consumer's dollar is passed along to the producer, 
shrinking a little each time it changes hands. 

When the country is prosperous and everybody is 
working at a good wage everything runs smoothly. But 
a panic may appear and a number of men be thrown out 
of employment. This makes it difficult for the retailer 
to collect his bills. The jobbing house has the same 
trouble and the canning company has to wait on the con- 
venience of the jobber. Consequently the grower does 
not get his money on time. Thus hard times prevail all 
along the line. If such panics are not serious banks can 
usually be depended upon to advance sufficient money to 
tide over the depression. But if conditions are bad the 



SPECIAL FRUIT ORGANIZATIONS 237 

banks will hesitate and the business must suffer and 
undergo an entire readjustment. 

What the jobbers have done in the way of credit in 
the distribution of foodstuffs the fruit exchanges are 
now doing in the distribution of fruit. It is simply ap- 
plying the principles of a well-established business to 
the handling of the various fruits. 

National League of Commission Merchants. — There 
are two or three fruit and produce organizations which 
represent an affiliation of business men but which, as an 
organization, do not attempt to do any commercial busi- 
ness. The National League of Commission Merchants 
represents an organization of this kind. Something of 
its methods has previously been mentioned, but its 
operations are so widespread and so significant that it 
seems advisable to further describe them. 

The active membership is composed exclusively of com- 
mission men handling fruit and produce. The object 
of the organization, as described in Article II of their 
constitution, includes the following: To unite growers 
and producers against the enactment of damaging laws, 
and in favor of desirable and favorable legislation. To 
aid in collecting and disseminating information. To help 
in improving business methods. To protect against dis- 
criminations, exactions and damages to transportations. 
To demand the integrity and financial responsibility of 
the members and the protection of all, so far as possible, 
from fraud, misrepresentation and injustice. 

The National League of Commission Merchants was 
formed in Chicago, in 1893, and grew out of an effort 
on the part of commission men of the responsible class 
to forestall dishonest dealing among certain types of 



238 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

their own profession. Certain abuses among disreputable 
produce handlers were rapidly creating distrust among 
fruit growers, hence financially responsible commission 
houses were seeking to correct the trouble. A commit- 
tee was formed to consider the credentials of houses be- 
fore being admitted to membership. This has formed 
a strong membership, a list of which is always available 
to any grower desiring to do business through commis- 
sion houses. 

The membership list has gradually increased from year 
to year until now it comprises nearly 400 handlers of 
produce. These may be found in 41 different cities in 21 
different states. Each firm or individual belonging to 
the association has to pay an annual fee of $30. These 
fees are turned into a general fund from which various 
activities are maintained. Chief among these is an an- 
nual appropriation of $10,000 set aside to maintain a 
business office. This is now located in New York City 
in charge of a manager, who looks after the busi- 
ness of the organization. In earlier years the presi- 
dent did this, but the duties have become so heavy and 
the difficulty of moving the office from city to city has 
made the establishing of a general office advisable. 

The duties of the manager's office include the adjust- 
ment of transportation rates, where they appear unrea- 
sonable or discriminatory, constant vigilance of both Na- 
tional and State legislation, adjustment of loss, damage 
and overcharge and claims against transportation com- 
panies, crop conditions. It is also a bureau of general 
information. 

Another feature of the organization is its annual con- 
vention. This is the important meeting of the. society 



SPECIAL FRUIT ORGANIZATIONS 239 

and is held in some c antral city, usually some time in 
January. A lengthy program is provided by some of 
the best educators obtainable. Standing committees on 
legislation, transportation, membership and various na- 
tional interests report at this meeting. These reports 
are valuable in acquainting the membership of events 
that may be related to their business and often valuable 
legislation is assisted or freak laws defeated by the aid 
of the League. Especially to be noted is the aid given 
in getting the standard barrel bill passed by the national 
congress in March, 1915. The proceedings of the annual 
convention are printed and distributed to the members 
and others who may be interested. This publication 
should be in the hands of every progressive fruit grower. 
International Apple Shippers' Association. — This is 
an organization of operators or dealers in green apples 
upon their own account; that is, individuals and firms 
who invest their money or credit in the purchase of 
apples. Its operations center primarily around the apple 
although its members handle many other food commodi- 
ties. The last roster shows over 108 different com- 
modities handled by the members of this association. 
The association was organized in Chicago, in 1895, with 
18 charter members. The real purpose of the associa- 
tion was to commercialize the apple; to improve the 
quality of the fruit grown ; to establish uniform grades, 
encourage honest packing in standard packages; to cor- 
rect abuses in freight rates and dishonest practices and 
to promote the best interests of the entire industry. No 
produce was handled by the association as an organiza- 
tion, but a great educational movement was started to 
advance the knowledge of horticulture and to dissemi- 



240 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

nate information concerning apple conditions and 
markets. 

The association was made international in scope to 
include the provinces of Canada and England and the 
continent. The first few years the activities of the or- 
ganization were very vigorous and considerable good 
was accomplished. In the last decade the peculiar eco- 
nomic situation of the apple industry, caused by the 
fluctuation of the crops from year to year, has stimu- 
lated a new interest and the association has become par- 
ticularly active. The membership has increased so rap- 
idly that now every fruit section of the United States, 
Canada and Europe is well represented. 

Membership. — Any individual or firm dealing in 
apples upon his or their own account whose reputation, 
character and financial responsibility is good is eligible 
to membership. The annual dues are $25, with a $10 
initation fee for new members. This goes toward de- 
fraying the expense of the business office, the committees, 
the annual meeting, etc. Producers or growers of apples 
who make no purchases upon their own account are not 
eligible to membership although the association has done 
a large work in disseminating knowledge covering the 
methods of fruit growing. Commission houses, brokers 
and selling agencies who do not handle apples are not 
eligible. The membership Roster includes 600 fruit 
handlers. These are found in 39 states in the United 
States; three provinces in Canada, and in Denmark, 
England, Scotland and Germany. 

The International Apple Shippers' Association main- 
tains a permanent secretary to look after the business 
of the organization. This office is in Rochester, N. Y. 



SPECIAL FRUIT ORGANIZATIONS 241 

The amount of business handled by the secretary can be 
estimated by quoting a few extracts from the annual 
report of 1915. During the year there were handled 
through the office 71,855 letters, reports, telegrams, in- 
quiries, publications, etc. The secretary traveled 10,318 
miles on association business and gave numerous ad- 
dresses before meetings and conventions. 

The secretary also has to look after the various publi- 
cations. About 3,000 copies of the official Roster were 
prepared and sent out in 1915. This gives the names 
and addresses of all the members of the association, the 
nature of their business and the commodities that each 
member handles. The report of the annual meeting has 
to be edited, published and distributed. This constitutes 
a nicely prepared pamphlet of about 200 pages and con- 
tains much information of value to both consumer and 
producer of apples. 

Committees. — A very important part of the work of 
the association is that conducted by the various com- 
mittees. At each annual meeting committees are ap- 
pointed to look after the varied interests of the asso- 
ciation for the coming year. Some of these committees 
are made up of men of keen business intellect and where 
kept on the same work for a period of years become 
powers for good in the work of the association. There 
are 12 permanent committees covering the following sub- 
jects: Advertising, arbitration, apple show premiums, 
rules for exhibits, grades, international tariffs, legisla- 
tion, membership, publicity, storage in transit, telephone 
and telegraph, ocean transportation, and domestic trans- 
portation. These committees work in cooperation with 
the president and executive committee. 



242 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

Among the things fostered and helped to successful 
conclusions might be mentioned the following: (1) The 
enacting of the Sulzer Bill into law, establishing a Na- 
tional standard apple barrel and standard grades for 
apples. (2) The New York and Massachusetts apple 
grading laws. (3) The National law establishing a stan- 
dard barrel for fruit and vegetables. (4) The privilege 
of allowing long distance shipments to be stopped and 
stored in transit and re-shipped later without materially 
increasing the cost. Many freak laws in transportation 
and cold storage have been helped to the museum. The 
night letter rate of the telegraph companies was insti- 
gated by the help of the association. The list could be 
extended indefinitely, but enough has been given to indi- 
cate the importance of the work of the committees. The 
work of the association along the line of standard grades 
and packages has been of very great value. It has 
' ' blazed the trail ' ' and led the way. 

Statistical Work. — Another very important part of 
the work of the association is the gathering of statistics. 
This is handled through the secretary's office and con- 
sists of reports of fruit in storage and estimates of the 
prospective crops. These statistics are published in spe- 
cial reports and distributed to the members of the asso- 
ciation. Estimates of crops are comparatively easy to 
get as the association has a good membership in every 
producing apple section in the United States — men that 
are directly associated with the business and are qualified 
to get accurate data. This ability to forecast the size of 
the apple crop, exerts a valuable influence in stabilizing 
the markets. It prevents the wonder-mongers from 
cheaping the product by constantly talking bumper crops 
with the attended oversupply. 



SPECIAL FRUIT ORGANIZATIONS 243 

The Spy. — This is the name of a monthly publication 
put out by the International Apple Shippers' Associa- 
tion. It is edited by the secretary and articles are con- 
tributed by various members of the association and 
others. Reviews of the work of the various committees, 
extracts from bills before the state legislatures and Con- 
gress affecting the apple industry, special articles, ex- 
port movement, and, in short, the entire field is covered. 
Altogether much information of value to both producers 
and distributors is thus disseminated. The mailing list 
is large including both members and non-members. 

Publicity Committee. — Through the efforts of this 
committee, National Apple Day, the third Tuesday in 
October, has been firmly established and widely cele- 
brated from ocean to ocean. Splendid publicity has thus 
been obtained for the apple. The amount of advertising 
thus obtained has been almost invaluable. The Inter- 
national Apple Shippers' Association is especially fitted 
for this work. It has a local chairman in every city of 
any size in the country and in this way gets action. Two 
silver cups, known as National Apple Day Trophies, are 
offered for the best celebration of the day. One is limited 
to cities of 500,000 and over, and the other to cities 
under 500,000. Last year there was but one cup, which 
was won by Cincinnati. 

Advertising Agencies. — Only in recent years have ef- 
forts been made to increase the consumption of fruit by 
means of advertising. Fruit growers and sellers have 
been accustomed to seeing advertisements of all manner 
of things but never thought that the same principles 
that would sell postum or coca-cola would sell fruit. 
The fruit jobbers have for years advertised their special 



244 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

brands of coffee, tea, spices, etc., but fruit has been ne- 
glected. Individuals like J. H. Hale have made an envi- 
able reputation by advertising and various trade-marks 
appear from time to time, but their efforts have been 
feeble with no permanent results. 

In 1912 the International Apple Shippers' Associa- 
tion added an advertising committee to its list and in- 
structed it to investigate the possibilities of advertising 
the apple industry. With an appropriation from the 
society and donations from individuals and organiza- 
tions, $900 was available for the initial start. It was at 
once foreseen that with an apple crop averaging about 
$100,000,000 annually and distributed over such a vast 
territory, that the task would be no easy one. It was 
also foreseen that if the advertising was to stimulate con- 
sumption that the interests of the consumers would have 
to be reached. 

How to do this and maintain funds for the work was 
a big problem. The first efforts were directed at the 
retailers. About 13,000 retailers were advised that if 
they would run a bargain counter of apples, the 
sales would greatly increase. Most retailers expect to 
make about 100% profit on the fruit they sell. The 
poster given out by the association explained that if they 
would reduce the price so as to make only the legitimate 
10 or 15% profit, that sales would increase and the total 
profit would be greater for each day. A number of the 
retailers saw the wisdom of this and tried the experiment 
with very satisfactory results. Many reported that the 
sales had increased from 5 to 50 times. 

Fruits as a Food. — The next step was to place before 
the consumer such literature as would create a desire 



SPECIAL FRUIT ORGANIZATIONS 245 

for the fruit. A little booklet was printed entitled ' ' 197 
Ways to Prepare the Apple," and sent into the homes 
of the consumers. At first these were distributed among 
the families of the larger cities. An effort is now being 
made to place one of these books in the home of every 
family in the United States. Nearly 100,000 copies have 
already been sent out. 

Some of the fruit exchanges and selling organizations 
are doing the same thing with other kinds of fruit. The 
California Fruit Exchange has a booklet on numerous 
ways to serve oranges and lemons. The Hawaiian Pine- 
apple Company has a pamphlet giving 100 ways of using 
the pineapple. Armour & Company have a booklet 
giving many recipes for using their grape juice. And 
so on, all with the idea of keeping their particular goods 
fresh in the minds of the consumer. And results have 
amply justified this method of advertising. And what 
is still more important from the standpoint of the sales- 
men is the fact that the quantity sold is increasing from 
year to year. 

Apple Advertisers of America. — Advertising the 
apple developed so rapidly that it soon outgrew the com- 
mittee appointed by the International Apple Shippers' 
Association and a special organization was formed. This 
took shape as the ' ' Apple Advertisers of America. ' ' The 
members of the advertising committee became officers of 
the organization and regional vice-presidents and mem- 
bers of an advisory board were appointed representing 
every important apple section in the United States. 
Then following the incorporation of the advertising as- 
sociation appeared an official organ in the shape of a 
monthly publication known as the Apple World. 



246 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

This was to foster the work of advertising and to pub- 
lish articles contributed by members of the advisory 
board. This paper has now appeared more or less irreg- 
ularly since 1914 and has done considerable good in aid- 
ing apple advertising. 

The Stamp Plan. — To effectively continue the work of 
advertising revenues had to be provided. To accomplish 
this the stamp plan was devised. Neatly lithographed 
stamps were secured of 1- and 2-cent denomination. 
These were put up in books of 100 each. The 1-cent 
stamp book sold for $1 ; the other for $2. The idea of 
their use was to place a 1-cent stamp on each box of 
apples sold and a 2-cent stamp on each barrel. While 
the stamps in no wise guaranteed the contents of the 
package they attracted attention by indicating that the 
seller belonged to the Apple Advertisers' Association. 
About $3,000,000 worth of the stamps were first issued 
and placed in the hands of a trust company for distribu- 
tion. In this way funds were to be provided to help along 
the work of advertising. 

The sale of stamps was to furnish the revenues to carry 
on an extensive advertising campaign. The services of 
experts were to be secured and definite plans marked out. 
Various kinds of advertising literature were to be printed, 
calendars devised, advertising signboards, signs for 
street-cars, etc., were soon to show to the public the advan- 
tages to health and happiness by eating apples. Still 
further, trained newspaper men were to be employed as 
press agents. In the language of the manager of the 
work : ' ' Articles will be prepared by the best writers of 
the country for the feature section of the Metropolitan 
Sunday papers. Health and beauty articles will be pre- 



SPECIAL FRUIT ORGANIZATIONS 247 

pared by noted doctors, health commissioners and others, 
to be published in the big magazines. Picture slides will 
be thrown on the canvas while reels are being changed. 
Motion plays featuring apple cookery will be prepared. 
Display advertisements of American apples, with mottoes 
like 'An Apple a Day Keeps the Doctor Away' will be 
distributed among retailers particularly." In fact, just 
such a campaign as would be conducted to sell corn flakes 
or postum, will be inaugurated. 

All of these efforts, while fundamentally sound in 
principle, failed hopelessly in so far as material results 
were concerned, because the producers did not support 
the movement. The stamps were not sold, hence no rev- 
enues were available to carry on the work. 

Some of the fruit exchanges and distributors are now 
endeavoring to reach the consumer direct through spe- 
cial advertising. One plan that has been in operation 
for some time in California is to offer premiums for the 
return of so many wrappers of oranges. Another plan 
used by a cured fruit association is to ship by parcel post 
so many pounds of prunes or raisins for a stated sum. 
Display advertisements announcing this plan appear in 
almost every family paper or magazine. Another plan 
now in use by the Northwestern Fruit Exchange is the 
issue of a little booklet advertising their brands and giv- 
ing colored lithographs of the best apples and a short 
description of their best uses and when to buy them. 
Following the pictures is a price-list for which the 
various grades and varieties will be delivered at the 
consumers door. 

Results of these methods of advertising have already 
been far-reaching, and 1914 was a year of unprecedented 



248 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

apple crop. The yield was probably never before reached 
in the apple industry, yet the movement of the crop was 
regular and without confusion. The prices were not 
so high as in former years, still sufficient to warrant fair 
returns for the money invested. Prices ran steady and 
even, and the distribution was uniform. Intelligent ad- 
vertising and broadminded business methods were re- 
sponsible for this unusual situation. Accurate statistics, 
even prices, uniform packages and standard grades have 
inspired confidence in the buying public, and advertising 
has created the demand. 

Gathering Statistics.— Reliable figures on fruit crops 
have ever been hard to get. This has been due in part 
to the perishable nature of the product, also to the lack 
of any well-organized effort in collecting data. Some- 
thing has already been mentioned of the efforts of the In- 
ternational Apple Shippers' Association in gathering 
statistics on the apple, but these do not include any of 
the other fruits. As the market prices depend largely 
upon the quantity of the fruit harvested it is highly 
desirable to get an accurate forecast of the conditions 
of the crop. The more information that can be placed 
in the hands of the producers and distributors of the 
fruit the greater the opportunity for getting equitable 
returns for the labor involved. 

Government Reports. — For years the United States 
government' has maintained a department for reporting 
crops. This has been under the auspices of the Agri- 
cultural Department and includes reports on all the im- 
portant agricultural crops. This work has been col- 
lected largely through the Post Office Department and 
through the efforts of special field agents. Printed 



SPECIAL FRUIT ORGANIZATIONS 249 

blanks containing a number of questions and places for 
answers are sent to each post office and the one in charge 
has had to fill them out and return to the office of crops. 
From these reports monthly bulletins are compiled and 
sent to the various papers where they are printed and 
sent out to the public. Also a regular mailing list is 
furnished with these bulletins. These reports are valu- 
able as they indicate the general crop conditions, but 
they are not sufficiently accurate to make a working basis 
for handling the fruit crop. 

Once in 10 years the Government takes a census of 
the country, which includes the horticultural products. 
These serve as guides for the general trend of the fruit 
business but give nothing much to help the marketing sit- 
uation. The system of tariffs and revenues makes it 
necessary to keep accurate records of the imports and 
exports and their respective value. This information is 
desirable and of value as an after consideration, but it 
serves only as a guide and gives no definite advance 
information. 

A number of the larger exchanges have their statistical 
department where they can get advance information from 
their own members. While this serves their own business 
admirably it does not add to the knowledge of the public 
until too late to be of any direct benefit. Such ex- 
changes usually hold their own information more or less 
of a secret until it has served its purpose. 

Market Reports. — The reports of the prices of farm 
commodities that appear regularly in the daily papers 
and agricultural journals are collected in various ways. 
Very few of the large daily papers have an expert to 
cover the markets and collect material for reports. Some 



250 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

of the agricultural papers collect data from the local 
markets but usually prefer to buy the informatiou from 
those who make a business of collecting it. 

Board Commodities. — The produce listed by the vari- 
ous boards- of trade is known as board commodities. These 
constitute the less perishable products such as : Grain, 
foodstuffs, potatoes, butter, cheese, etc., but in no cases 
fresh fruit. The commodities have the prices fixed every 
morning by the board of trade in the various cities. 
The representative of the Associated Press in each of the 
cities get these prices each morning after they have been 
fixed and they are then distributed over the country to 
the daily papers. In this manner most of the large 
dailies get rather accurate information on all board com- 
modities but nothing covering fruit products. 

Fruit Commodities. — Market reports for the fruit 
products have to be collected from day to day as best 
they can. This information can only be had from those 
who handle the goods. And not all produce houses are 
willing to furnish this free. There are in all of the 
larger cities, trade or produce journals which have their 
experts to cover the markets and get the sale prices of 
the fruit. This is done in several ways. The agent can 
visit the auctions and make notes of the sales. They can 
arrange with the larger commission houses for daily 
reports. They may also cooperate with the fruit ex- 
changes or distributors to get the desired information. 
For the shipments into the cities the freight depart- 
ments of the railroads are available, as they have to keep 
such information on file; for foreign shipments, steam- 
ship companies furnish the information. All this calls 
for an expert knowledge of the city and surrounding 



SPECIAL FRUIT ORGANIZATIONS 251 

conditions; also one with strong enough personality to 
win the confidence of the dealers, as there is always in- 
formation that the market expert would get and if made 
public would be detrimental to the interests of the 
produce handlers. 

Prices quoted in the dailies are usually wholesale. 
They do not represent what the producer gets nor what 
the consumer pays, but a general medium somewhere 
between. The commission house would report what the 
fruit sold for. The producer would get what was left 
after freight, commission, cartage, etc., was deducted. 
The jobber's prices would represent the same, as they 
buy most of their products on an f. o. b. basis. The 
auction quotations would also be the same, less freight 
and commission to producer. 

To the consumer the profits of the retailer must be 
added to the sales quotation. This is never less than 
15% and usually about 40% and not infrequently 100%. 
Market quotations are always valuable as a guide to the 
producer, but the more the grower can know of their 
methods of collection the better will be his chances of 
getting what his fruit is worth. Each producer must 
make a close study of the market reports, 



CHAPTER XII 

FRUIT SHOWS 

Objects. — Fruit shows are one of the more recent de- 
velopments in horticultural progress. Every fruit-pro- 
ducing section now boasts of its big shows, and so impor- 
tant have they become that they must be considered as 
an essential branch of the fruit industry. The objects 
to be obtained by such exhibitions may be classified under 
three heads: (1) To advertise some fruit or fruit-pro- 
ducing section. (2) To stimulate an interest in fruit 
growing. (3) To disseminate knowledge. All three are 
worthy objects and past results have justified the claim 
that fruit shows are a good criterion of the energy and 
ability of the people giving them. 

Fruit exhibits give the growers a chance to get to- 
gether, display their products, and to match their skill 
with their neighbors in the production of fancy fruit. 
This stimulates an interest in the business and creates a 
desire on the part of the weak or unskilled ones to grow 
better fruit. The display of varieties, the kinds of packs 
and the style of packages gives the growers a chance to 
observe and make use of those suited to their needs. 
Occasionally programs are arranged on topics of interest 
along horticultural lines; thus knowledge is spread. 
Buyers are attracted to the shows, and sales are often 
made during the exhibition. Newspapers send their re- 
porters and, if of sufficient importance to warrant, con- 
siderable space is given to the show. Prospective in- 

252 



FRUIT SHOWS 253 

vestors in fruit lands take such occasions to visit the 
place and investigate its importance as a producing sec- 
tion. 

How Held or Managed. — The methods of handling 
fruit shows are as numerous as the varied fruit-produc- 
ing sections. The larger ones are held under the auspices 
of a regular fruit show organization. The National Fruit 
Show held annually at Spokane, Wash., is an example of 
this type. It represents a stock company and is incor- 
porated under the laws of the State of Washington. The 
admission fees and revenues from the various concessions 
make the organization self-supporting or even dividend 
paying. Different fruit-growing sections often hold their 
own annual exhibit. Such are supported by the growers 
in the particular section. Where such sections are large 
and the business well developed the show becomes an event 
of state or national importance. Often real estate or 
transportation companies get up exhibits to attract 
buyers to the section, to help sell their land and con- 
tribute to the support of the railroad. 

Often the show is held in connection with some exist- 
ing organization. Probably the majority of the smaller 
ones are managed in this way. State and county fairs 
have exceptionally fine displays of fruits and vegetables, 
and such represent the oldest type of fruit shows in the 
United States. Agricultural and horticultural societies 
may have displays of fruit in connection with their 
annual convention or their important meetings. Pomo- 
logical societies, fruit growers' conventions, granges and 
other similar organizations often foster quite extensive 
exhibits on special occasions. Probably the latest devel- 
opments along this line are the land shows held in the 



254 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

larger cities. At such times the products of the land 
are collected together from large areas and displayed 
for the benefit of the public In fact, fruit shows are 
becoming so important and so numerous that if one 
choses he could get a liberal education on fruit growing 
by attending the various exhibits. 

The time that most fruit shows are held must natur- 
ally be in the fall or early winter so there will be ample 
material for exhibits. In some instances the displays 
are maintained the year around. Real estate companies, 
chambers of commerce, boards of trade, etc., often main- 
tain permanent exhibits. In such cases the more perish- 
able fruits are preserved in liquids which keep them for 
a long time without deteriorating. So skilled have their 
processers become that the fruit can be kept for several 
years without the loss of the most delicate shades. The 
Pacific Coast states have exceptionally fine collections 
of these processed fruits. For example, the ' ' California 
Development Board" maintains an exhibit in San Fran- 
cisco representing every county in the state. Visitors at 
any time can see the fruits of the entire state without 
having to travel over the fruit sections. 

Exhibits. — Good exhibits are essential to a good show 
and not always easy to obtain. Specimens of fruit can 
best be selected by the grower or handler of the crop 
and some inducement must be offered to create a lasting 
interest, and so premiums or prizes are offered to attract 
fruit for exhibition. In sections where shows are held 
for the first time considerable effort must be put forth 
on the part of the management to have the exhibitors 
understand just what is wanted. The ideas of orchard- 
men differ widely on such subjects, and unless they un- 



FRUIT SHOWS 



255 



derstand clearly just what is desired unpleasant feelings 
may be created and the whole purpose of the show will 
be defeated. 

Premium List. — The list of premiums is always de- 
cided upon several weeks in advance of the time of the 
show. It is printed, giving the different classes for 
which prizes are offered and the amount of the premium 





Fig. 124.-7,000 BOXES OF APPLES DISPLAYED UNDER A TENT, 
WATERVILLE, CAL. 



after each class. If the show is a large one the prizes 
will have to be correspondingly large in order to create 
sufficient interest to get good competition. In many 
cases premiums as high as $100 are awarded for first or 
sweepstake prize. 

The classes into which the fruit is divided must be 
clearly defined. There may be as few as 10 or as many 
as 100, depending on the territory covered and the size 



256 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

of the exhibits. For each class there are two and some- 
times three prizes, listed as first, second and third. If 
the first premium was $25, the second would be $10 and 
the third $5. Each one being 50% or less of the preced- 
ing one. The most important class heads the list and 
the rest follow in their order. Where boxes are the chief 
package used they are placed in groups of 5, 10, 25, 100, 
and sometimes 500 or a carload. 

Each different group then becomes a separate class on 
the premium list. Where the shows are small and both 
boxes and barrels included, 10, or occasionally 25 would 
represent the largest number in any single class. Fre- 
quently single box premiums are offered. In all classes 
representing marketable packages the premium list speci- 
fies the commercial pack because the way the fruit is 
packed and the kind of package is considered in awarding 
the premium. The idea is to have the specifications con- 
form as near as possible to the requirements of the best 
sellers on the general market. 

Plate exhibits, where perfection of the fruit alone is 
the chief consideration, may constitute a number of 
classes. The usual plate contains five apples although 
plates of 12 each are sometimes used. These may fall 
into several groups of single plates only, or in groups 
of 5, 10 or 15 varieties each. Other classes would be 
displays from organizations, such as exchanges, societies, 
granges, counties, etc. These types are usually listed in 
the premium book as the best single display contain- 
ing 5, 10 or 15 varieties of fruit. 

Another class is what is usually termed feature dis- 
plays. These represent certain well-known objects of 
political or historical interest, built up out of fruit or 



FRUIT SHOWS 257 

fruit products. Such give an opportunity for the builder 
to draw on his ingenuity or imagination to construct 
something that will be attractive and appropriate. The 
premium list may also include the numerous fruit by- 
products. Dried fruits, beverages, vinegars, jellies, 
canned goods of all kinds may be represented in this 
class. 

Other Information. — Each class with its numerous 
subdivisions is systematically arranged in the printed 
form with the premium following each one. There is 
also complete information on all requirements made by 
the management. Directions on how to reserve space for 
displays, the rules for making entries, the size and kinds 
of packages that can be used, are included. The time 
limit set for the placing of exhibits, how the premiums 
will be awarded, and any varieties of fruit that are to 
be excluded are explained in the preliminary notice. It 
is advisable also to state who the judges will be and give 
the scale of points to be used on the official score card. 
The more specific and full the information can be the 
less the chance for dissatisfaction among exhibitors. 

Securing Premiums. — The money to pay for the 
premiums is arranged for before the premium list is sent 
out. This is provided in various ways. "Where the show 
is handled by a business organization, admission or gate 
fees will usually take care of the premiums. Where ad- 
mission is free and the work is purely educational other 
means must be found. Where the shows are held in large 
towns or cities business men are willing to subscribe 
under most conditions. Boards of trade, chambers of 
commerce and even the city in which the show is held 
will often contribute. City officials, railroad companies, 



258 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

trolley lines, and the various industrial organizations 
may contribute cups or prizes of various kinds. Some- 
times individuals will offer cash prizes for a single box 
or barrel with the understanding that he is to get the 
package that wins the prize. Such represents a larger 
sum than the probable commercial value of the package. 
There are innumerable ways by which a competent man- 
agement can provide sufficient funds to cover the 
awards. Care is taken, however, that the requests for 
funds do not become so numerous and the sums so large 
that the business people become disgusted and refuse 
to contribute. 

Selecting Fruit for Exhibits. — Fruit for show pur- 
poses can best be selected during harvesting time. Extra- 
fine specimens for plates can be laid to one side during 
the process of harvesting and given special attention to 
keep them in good shape. Fruit for boxes or barrels 
can be set aside and given extra care later. It is neces- 
sary to handle fruit for show purposes with every pos- 
sible care. The bloom ought not to be disturbed, and it 
is unnecessary to state that no bruises, blemishes or 
marks of any kind are permitted. If gloves could be 
worn in handling the fruit less injury would result. 

Commercial packs must conform in every way to the 
requirements of the market. The packages are standard 
and extra care is taken to make them neat and clean. 
The grades conform to the laws or customs of the com- 
munity in which the show is held. In box-packs the 
apples are all wrapped except the top layer. The man- 
agement of the show specifies on all such points. If 
barrels are used the same precautions hold true. A 
dirty or careless package may spoil the chances for a 



FRUIT SHOWS 259 

prize. The fruit may be either packed at home or 
shipped to the show and packed by experts, the latter is 
usually the better, as good packs may be disarranged by 
rough handling in shipping. 

The fruit selected for the exhibit is best placed by 
itself as soon as picked and graded. When the time for 
the show arrives it is re-graded and carefully examined 
for blemishes of all kinds. Scab or scale-marked fruit 
is rejected. All stems should be intact, and no limb 
bruises or blotches show. After this is done, the owner 
or packer grades for size and color. Each package then 
is as uniform in these respects as possible. Many shows 
specify what the standard sizes of the different varieties 
is to be, in which case the exhibitor adheres strictly to 
the rules. Unduly large fruits should not be placed in 
commercial packs for that which is discounted on the gen- 
eral market will be discounted by the judges. And the 
market does not care for oversized specimens. In plate 
exhibits uniformity in size and color markings are looked 
out for. Fruit may vary naturally in color yet uniform- 
ity in each separate plate is necessary. Overcolored or 
undercolored specimens are usually discounted. 

When the selection is all complete the packing may 
begin. Barrels and boxes may be packed before send- 
ing. Most judges allow for the ordinary box bruises, 
so such will stand an even chance with those packed 
after reaching the show. Long distance shipping in 
barrels for exhibition seldom pays. Boxes may be placed 
in straw or excelsior in barrels. If sent to the exhibition 
and then packed, about 15% more fruit is sent than is 
intended to be used, to allow for bruises or damages in 
shipping. For plate specimens, each separate fruit is 



260 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 




Fig. 125.— A CARLOAD EXHIBIT AT THE NATIONAL FRUIT 
SHOW, SPOKANE, WASH. 



wrapped in tissue paper and carefully packed in boxes 
for shipment. It is always best for each exhibitor to 
place his own fruit at the show, but where this cannot 
be done the management always provides someone to 
place them for him. 

Arranging Displays. — The best way to place the ex- 
hibits will depend upon the size of the show and on 
the space available. Almost every possible arrangement 
will come under one of the three methods : booths, tables 
or racks. Booths are best for the larger displays and lend 
themselves to a variety of conditions. Organizations 
of various kinds, local exchanges, granges, real estate 
companies most often make use of booths. A framework 
is placed around the outside and then covered with bunt- 
ing or some cheap material with the proper color to best 



FRUIT SHOWS 261 

show off the display. A careful study of the color scheme 
and the selection of just the right shades will often make 
the difference between success and failure. 

Racks are best used for box exhibits, and tables for 
plates and similar displays. The position of both is 
studied with reference to light. The effects of light by 
day and gas or electric lights by night are quite differ- 
ent. Often displays lose in attractiveness because of a 
too glaring light. A soft, diffused light is preferable 
to insufficient or harsh lights. The best position for 
racks is at an angle of about 45 degrees and high 
enough so the average man cannot look over the top. 
If too flat or too straight the view will not be as good, 
and part of the effectiveness lost. Tables can be ar- 
ranged in most any way that will give good light with 
ease and convenience for examination. The more iso- 
lated each class can be, the better will be the general 
effect. If plate exhibits can be set off in a corner or in 
a room by themselves better results can be had. 

Advertising. — All shows to be a success must be well 
advertised. This is the work of the management, and if 




1'ig. 126.— A NEW ENGLAND BOX AND BARREL DISPLAY 



262 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

properly done calls for considerable time and study. 
Several methods are available for this work, such as the 
use of posters, handbills, street-signs, paid advertise- 
ments and news articles. In some way the show must 
be kept constantly in the minds of the public. News- 
papers are willing to print everything that will pass as 
news. If the articles are cleverly written, considerable 
space can be had which amounts to free advertising. 
When the meeting is called to arrange for the show, 
notices may be given to the papers. This is repeated 
when the premium list goes out. Press notices should 
be furnished from time to time on different organizations 
that are preparing exhibits. Properly designed hand- 
bills are sent out from one to two weeks previous to the 
opening. 

If there is to be a program this may be printed sev- 

r \ ' i *' 




Fig. 127.— PHOTOGRAPHS OF ORCHARD SCENES HELP 
FRUIT SHOWS 



FRUIT SHOWS 263 

eral times in the papers. During the last four or five 
days preceding the show, press comments on parts of the 
program will help. One or two speakers of state or 
national reputation are preferably selected. Then their 
picture with a few comments on their work and ability 
just before the show opens will attract wide attention. 
Such work is written by the management and furnished 
the papers, all ready for publication. When the open- 
ing day comes, large street-signs giving directions where 
to go, placed near railroads or public places, will attract 
strangers who happen to be in the town. If an admission 
fee is to be collected much more attention will need to 
be given to advertising. 

Side Issues. — There are many extras that may prop- 
erly accompany a fruit show. Concessions of various 
kinds are sold to people who habitually follow such 
exhibits as a means of livelihood. Lunch counters, soft 
drinks and novelties of all kinds are to be found at every 
large show. In some places there is a regular midway 
with all of its attendant rabble. These concessions are 
regulated by the management and contribute consider- 
able money toward the support of the show. Floor space 
is also in demand by companies who manufacture ar- 
ticles used in horticultural practice. Spray machinery, 
chemicals, fruit packages, nursery stock, and the many 
orchard tools are only a few of the many side exhibits 
that may legitimately accompany a fruit show. 

Manufacturers of fruit byproducts can profitably make 
displays. Canned fruit, preserves, jellies, and beverages 
are put on as exhibits for the purpose of advertising the 
goods. "Where there is a special women's section in the 
show there is no end of articles used in the domestic 



264 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



economy of the home that might not be displayed. Some- 
times the management, desiring to make more money, 
handles the concessions themselves. Lunch counters or 
short order meals constitute their chief venture. One 
national fruit show had a mammoth pie machine that 
would turn out 1,000 pies an hour. These were sold to 
the crowd at a good profit. Such shows have from 
5,000 to 10,000 paid admissions, and are able to do 
things on a large scale. 

Feature Exhibits. — A display of this kind consists of 
some special design imitating a place, a building, or 
some well-known feature of the fruit section. They are 
designed in such a way that a number of the different 




Fig. 128.— THE PANAMA CANAL BUILT OUT OF DRIED APPLES. 
WATSONVILLE, CAL. 



FRUIT SHOWS 



265 




Fig. 129.— AN ATTRACTIVE BOOTH WITH PAINTED SCENIC 
BACKGROUND, SPOKANE, WASH. 



fruits or fruit products can be used in their construction. 
Their primary object is to advertise the fruit with a 
secondary one of calling attention to some particular 
phase of place or state. Sometimes the state emblem 
could be used. Real estate men thus advertise their 
lands, resorts, their hotels or casinos. Such features may 
be participated in by school children or by boy's and 



266 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



girl's clubs. A feature design representing the Panama 
Canal was built by high school children and was designed 
to be topographically correct (Fig. 28). It took the 
first prize on feature exhibits of $200. 

Feature exhibits attract wide attention, and when well 
executed are good advertisers of a fruit section. News- 
papers and magazines are always glad to use photographs 
of the features, as tliey represent news. Such displays 
are carefully sketched on paper ahead of time so as to 







Fig. 130.— FEATURE DISPLAY. NEW BRUNSWICK, CAN. 

get the right proportions. The framework is then built 
of wood or wire and the fruit put on as late as possible 
before the opening day. Good features call for a con- 
siderable amount of time and money but they are repre- 
sentative of the highest in fruit display work. Where 
used for the first time the efforts are usually towards the 
smaller and simpler designs, giving opportunity for de- 
velopment in succeeding years. 



FRUIT SHOWS 



267 



Judging the Fruit. — The examining of the fruit and 
the awarding of prizes is the most delicate problem in 
the handling of fruit shows. Exhibitors are sensitive 
and are quick to take exceptions to any decision 
unfavorable to their own interests. The management 
must be alert to such 
difficulties and pro- 
vide competent 
judges to examine 
the fruit. Any ques- 
tion of doubt must 
be foreseen, if possi- 
ble, and rules gov- 
erning such points 
incorporated in the 
premium list. Where 
such are omitted the 
judges are instructed 
on each particular 
case as it arises. 
After one or two 
years the rough 
places are smoothed 
out and the people 
become satisfied as 
they become more 
liberal in their views. 
The Judges.— The 
judges are usually 
men with more or 
less technical train- Fig . i 3 i._a feature display 

ing, and are repre- National fruit show. Spokane, Wash. 




268 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

sentatives of agricultural colleges, government service, 
or some fruit-handling organization. They, ordinarily, 
are men of wide experience and of much traveling, and 
familiar with a great variety of conditions. Many judges 
for large shows are men of prominence, who are not 
accustomed to much physical work, and who are in the 
habit of turning over details to clerks or subordinates. 
Often the work must be done in the presence of noisy 
crowds. A man's judgment may be keen and active at 
the beginning of the work, but at the end of the day 
becomes fagged from pure exhaustion. 

In most cases judges get no pay except sufficient to 
cover traveling expenses, considering that the experience 
and knowledge gained will offset the loss of time. Most 
shows cannot afford salaried judges, yet many dollars in 
prizes, good will and prestige depends upon the opinion 
of the ones examining the fruit. Exhibitors are often 
critical, and it is only right and just that they should 
know how their fruit scores and wherein they may im- 
prove another year. Score cards are best left with the 
exhibitor or placed on file to be reviewed or studied over. 
Such work is largely educational, and were it not for the 
fact that the various educational institutions so con- 
sidered it and allowed their instructors to go on with 
such work without loss of time, fruit shows would find 
competent judges hard to get. 

Score Card. — The score card giving the scale of points 
on which the judges are to award the prizes is always 
prepared ahead of time. It is best to include this in- 
formation in the premium list so the exhibitors can place 
their fruit with the importance of the different points 
in mind. The score card is based on a percentage of 



FRUIT SHOWS 269 

perfect pack or fruit. Either 100 or 1,000 points may be 
used, the latter preferably. Each different class will 
probably call for a different set of weights for each 
point. Where commercial packs are specified the per- 
fect pack is considered as the one that would bring the 
highest price on the market. Each particular feature 
that the buyer would consider is weighed separately, 
according to its importance. The sum total of these 
points represents the ideal or 100% perfect. 

The score card for the fruit, not associated with a 
market question, represents more the ideal in the minds 
of the judges to which the variety is supposed to con- 
form. Other classes may need to have special score cards 
prepared to meet the needs of the occasion. In the case 
of feature displays the judges devise some means of 
comparison to cover the particular feature under con- 
sideration. There are many different kinds of score cards 
in common use in the different fruit sections of the 
United States. In nearly all cases the important points 
covered are the same, differing only in the relative 
weights given the different points. Efforts have re- 
cently been made to combine these into a universal 
score card for all conditions. Through the efforts of the 
Society of Horticultural Science such a score card has 
appeared. 

Judging the Fruit. — With this very elaborate schedule 
to go by, all the judges have to do is to examine the 
package and see how near, in their judgment, it con- 
forms to the standard. While this appears very easy 
to do, it is, in reality, very difficult. Men do not often 
think alike, hence two or three judges are better than 
one, as their opinion represents an average. Where there 



270 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



are several hundred or a thousand boxes to examine, two 
or three days' time will be necessary to go over them 
with the painstaking attention to details necessary. 

The details of examining; a commercial box pack is not 
difficult to comprehend, but calls for careful work and 
an acuteness of judgment, which is altogether too often 
lacking. Having a copy of the official score card and a 
list of the classes of exhibits, the judges proceed to the 
racks and begin examining the fruit. Where the box 
entries are numerous it is impractical to go through 
every box. Of the 50 box entries, 10 are usually ex- 
amined; of the 25, five; of the 5, two, and of the single 
box entries it is customary to examine but half of the 
contents of each box. The judges work together. On the 
single box exhibits they score one at a time, finishing 
each variety before commencing on the next. Of the 
entries of five or more each judge takes a box, being 
careful to keep the same relative number for each one. 
The average then stands for the final score. The vari- 
ous entries are listed by number, and the name of the 
exhibitor kept off until after the prizes are awarded. 




Fig. 133.— EXAMINING TTTE BULGE 



FRUIT SHOWS 



271 



SCORE CARD FOR SWEEPSTAKE PRIZES 

Or other competitions between different varieties of 
packed fruit. 



BOX 

Fruit 

Texture and flavor. 

Value of variety. . . 

Size and form 

Color 

Uniformity 



Points 



100 
100 
100 
120 
100 
Freedom from blemishes 130 

Total 

Package 

Material 30 

Marking 10 

Solidity (Nailing, cleats, 
etc.) 10 



Total 

Packing 

Bulge or swell 100 

Alignment 20 

Height of ends 60 

Compactness 80 

Attractiveness and style 
of packing 40 

Total 



650 



50 



BARREL 

Texture and flavor. . . . 100 

Value of variety 100 

Size and form 100 

Color 100 

Uniformity 100 

Freedom from blemishes 150 

Total 

Heads 10 

Staves 10 

Hoops 10 

Nailing 20 

Marking 20 

Total 

Facing 80 

Tailing 50 

Pressing 70 

Packing 80 



Points 



650 



300 



Total 



70 



280, 



FOR BARRELS AND BOXES OF A GIVEN VARIETY 

BOX 

Fruit Points Points 

Texture and flavor .... 100 

Size and form 100 

Color 150 

Uniformity 150 

Freedom from blemishes 150 



Total 

Package 

Material 

Marking 

Solidity (Nailing, cleats, 
etc.) 



30 
10 



10 



Total 



Packing 

Bulge or swell 100 

Alignment 20 

Height of ends 60 

Attractiveness and style 

of packing 40 

Compactness 80 

Total 



650 



BARREL, 

Texture and flavor .... 100 

Size and form 100 

Color 150 

Uniformity 150 

Freedom from blemishes 150 

Total 

Staves 10 

Hoops 10 

Heads 10 

Nailing 20 

Marking 20 



Total 



300 



Facing 80 

Tailing 50 

Pressing 70 

Racking 80 



Total 



650 



70 



280 



1,000 



1,000 



272 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

SINGLE PLATE SCORE CARDS FOR FRUIT OF A 
GIVEN VARIETY 

APPLES AND PEARS PEACHES AND CHERRIES 

Points Points 

Form 15 Form 10 

Size 15 Size 20 

Color 20 Color 25 

Uniformity 20 Uniformity 20 

Freedom from blemish 30 Freedom from blemish 25 

Total 100 Total 100 

Quality when scored 25 Quality when scored 25 

PLUMS QUINCES 

Points Points 

Form 10 Form 15 

Size 25 Size 20 

Color 20 Color 15 

Uniformity 20 Uniformity 20 

Freedom from blemish 25 Freedom from blemish 30 

Total 100 Total 100 

Quality when scored 25 

GRAPES 

Points 

Form of bunch 10 

Size of bunch 15 

Size of berry 10 

Color 10 

Uniformity 10 

Freedom from blemish "20 

Quality 20 

Firmness 5 

Total 100 

COLLECTION OF FRUITS WITH SPECIFIED 
NUMBER OF PLATES 

Points 

"Value of varieties for purpose stated 50 

Condition of fruit (Average of individual plate score) 50 

Total 100 

LARGEST AND BEST COLLECTION 

Points 

Number of varieties 33-1-3 

Value of varieties for purpose stated 33 1-3 

Condition of fruit (Average of individual plate score) 33 1-3 



Total 100 



FRUIT SHOWS 



273 



In judging a commercial box pack the first considera- 
tion is usually the package. The box is looked over 
critically. Anything that might detract from a good ap- 
pearance is noted. Soil marks, use of weathered boards, 
bad or unsightly knots, carelessness in nailing are 
summed up, and each one is marked off in proportion to 
its value on the official score card. The next step is to 
study the way the fruit is placed in the package. The 
bulge calls for 100 points and is the most important, as 
upon it depends the ease in which the fruit will carry 
to market. This bulge needs to be at least an inch above 
the box at the center and form a regular curve to the 
ends. If the apples do not come above the box, all is 
marked off ; if only half enough, 50 points are taken off, 
and so on. If one side is higher than the other, or the 
curve is not regular enough, points are taken off to 
indicate the defect. This is a matter of judgment for 
the judges, but seldom will two fail to agree on any one 
point. 




Fig. 133.— JUDGING COMPACTNESS 



274: 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 




Fig. 134.— TESTING FOR END PLAY 



The height at ends comes next. The last row of apples 
at the end of the perfect box projects from a fourth to 
three-eighths inches above the end, and a strip laid on 
top will run parallel to the box. If these run too low or 
too high or are uneven they are marked off accordingly. 
The compactness is tested by placing the hands on the 
top of the fruit and testing the give under pressure and 
the side movement (Fig. 133). The hands are then run 
down at the end of the box to see if there is any end 
play (Pig. 134): If the hands can be forced down to 



FRUIT SHOWS 



275 



the bottom of the box all the points are marked off. 
This denotes a loose package, which will be ruined in 
shipping to market. 

The alignment and attractiveness are usually consid- 
ered together. The rows run straight and true in both 
directions. The attractiveness has to do with the style 
of the pack, the arrangement of the fruit on side or end 
to give the neatest appearance. The wrapping papers 
are looked at, the way they are put on, etc The box 




Fig. 135.— EXAMINING FOR DISEASES, INSECTS OR BRUISES 



liners are studied, and points are deducted to represent 
the detraction from a perfect appearance. Good looks 
are as important in the selling of fruit as good clothes 
are to a marriageable daughter. 

"When the packing has been examined sufficiently, then 
the judges turn their attention to the fruit itself. From 
a half to a third of the apples are taken out of the box, 
the wrappers removed and each apple examined for in- 
sect injuries, bruises, fungus marks, scale, etc. (Fig. 



276 



MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



135). For each blemish noted one point is deducted 
from the 150 points allowed for this purpose. If half 
of the box is examined and 10 blemishes discovered, this 
would be multiplied by two for the entire box and the 
total, or 20 points, be deducted. Occasionally the rules 
of the show are to exempt marks that are the result of 
lid pressure in nailing up the boxes for drayage or ship- 
ment. Manifestly it would not be right to disqualify 
a commercial pack for the so-called "box bruises" result- 




Fig. 136.— TESTING FOR UNIFORMITY 



ing from shipping, because no pack has been found 
which will entirely eliminate them. 

The apples which have been unwrapped are piled back 
in the box and studied for uniformity (Fig. 136). If 
more than one size is found they are scored off in propor- 
tion to the number that vary. The size refers to the 
commercial value of the apples exhibited. Unduly large 
specimens are discounted on the general market just the 
same as if they were diseased. On the other hand, apples 



FRUIT SHOWS 277 

sufficiently small to run over 150 to the box are not 
wanted. Therefore, oversized and undersized varieties 
are scored off in proportion to their variation of the 
market standard. 

The color of the fruit must be uniform. This may 
vary from box to box in the same variety, but should not 
vary in the same box. Where the top layer is not 
wrapped, highly colored specimens are all turned with 
the blush in the same relative way. A variegated color 
arrangement often materially detracts from the appear- 
ance. The value of the variety is a comparatively new 
requirement and is usually inserted where boxes com- 
pete for sweepstake prizes. This is to prevent undesir- 
able varieties from getting first place. 

Texture and flavor is the one doubtful Jonah to judges. 
Obviously they could not sample or taste apples from 
1,000 to 2,000 packages. Any way, there is no accounting 
for taste. "What one judge may like another one would 
throw out. Besides, apples which are at their best at 
widely different times come together in competition at 
the same time, giving an unfair distinction. Judges usu- 
ally get around this vexed question by marking all 
entries perfect in texture and flavor, unless there seems 
to be some gross departure from the average accepted 
types. 

Those who have thus far followed this article will see 
that the task of a fruit judge is no easy one. The details 
are exacting and each point must be carefully considered. 
After the entries have all been examined the judges then 
retire and total up the scores. Those ranking the high- 
est are taken to the management of the show and the 
number is then affixed to the name of the exhibitor and 



278 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 

the judges for the first time know the names of the 
people whose fruit they have been scoring. This, to- 
gether with the fact that usually the judges are outside 
men who have little knowledge or acquaintance with 
the people holding the show, leaves but a remote possi- 
bility of unfairness to the exhibitors. 



INDEX 



Page 
Accessories for fruit packing. 55 
Advantages of commission 

houses 170 

of public storages 115 

Ammonia compression system 

for cold storage 105 

condenser for 106 

compressor for 105 

expansion coils for 106 

Apple advertisers of America 245 
advertising, methods of. 247 

the stamp plan of 246 

box 50 

packing crews 78, 79 

packing in boxes 63 

wrapping 71 

wra^>s 56 

Auction companies for hand- 
ling fruit 209 

companies in England. . . 216 

B 

Bags used for harvesting fruit 11 
Barrels and boxes compared 

as to cost 81 

and boxes in the orchard 

at picking time 15 

Barrel Headers 63 

making 51 

making outfit 51 

materials 51 

presses 63 

Baskets used in fruit harvest- 
ing 10 

Benefits of cooperation 199 

Boxing apples '. . . 63 

Box liners 63 

marking machines 82, 84 

presses 76 

Brine system for cold storage 106 
Business credit of jobbing 

houses 235 

279 



C 

Page 
California fruit distributors. 223 
Capacity of cars for fruit . . . 149 

Care in picking fruit 9 

used in shipping fruit 134 

Cellars for fruit storage 88 

Charges for storing fruit. . . . 115 

Cheek pack explained 71 

City fruit markets 155 

fruit stands. 221 

Commission houses 167 

Commodities handled by job- 
bing houses 234 

Commodity rates for fruit. . . 136 
Construction of fruit storage 

cellars 89, 90 

of storage houses 94 

Controlling moisture in stor- 
age houses Ill, 112 

temperature of storage 

houses 93 

Conveniences for grading fruit 32 
Cooling solutions for cold 

storages 104 

Cooperation defined 173 

Cooperative fruit grading and 

packing . 25 

fruit selling 174 

organizations 174-202 

benefits of 199 

central office of . . . . 178 
collecting informa- 
tion through 184 

definition of 173 

director of 184 

disadvantages of . . . 201 
dispersing informa- 
tion through 189 

district associations 

of 17S 

financial aid to mem- 
bers of 191 

how organized. . . 174-177 



280 



INDEX 



Page 
Cooperative organizations, in- 
corporating of 181 

information blank 

for growers in. . . 186 
loaning money to 

members of 192 

local associations of 177 , 

management of 179 

membership of 183 

non-profit sharing. . 175 

profit sharing 175 

sub-departments of. 192 

Cost of apple packing 80 

picking fruit 19 

storing fruit 113 

Count as used in box packs. . 68 
Cultural methods affecting 

fruit in storage 121 

D 

Dead-air space in insulating 

cold storages 99 

Diagonal pack for boxed apples 66 

Direct expansion system for 

cold storages 108 

Disadvantages of commission 

houses 170 

of public storages. . .116, 117 

Disposition of the fruit at 

picking time 14 

Distance from market affect- 
ing the harvesting of 
fruit 1 

Dug-outs for fruit storages . 89, 90 

E 

Effects of freezing on fruit in 

storage 123 

of storage on fruit 119 

End pack explained 71 

Express companies handling 

fruit 135 

F 

Facing the barrel in fruit 

packing 59 

Factors influencing demand. . 162 

influencing price 164 

influencing supply 160 

Filling the apple box 70 

Freezing of fruit 123 



Page 

Fruit as a food 245 

changes in ripening 132 

commodities 250 

decay in storage 127 

distributors 223 

exchanges 174-202 

field box 15 

for exhibition 257 

from orchard to packing- 
house 16 

grades 25 

grades classified 28 

harvesting 1 

jobbers 232 

judging 267 

markets 152 

organizations 223 

package requirements .... 40 

packages 40 

cheapness of 41 

convenience of 41 

durability of 42 

lightness of 41 

sanitation of 42 

packing house 22 

packing in barrels 57-63 

packing material 56 

packing operations. ..... 57 

picked with stems off . . . 8 
picked with stems on ... . 8 

scald in storage 125 

selling 167 

shows 252-278 

advertising of 261 

arranging displays 

for 260 

exhibits for 254 

feature displays for. 264 
how to arrange for. 253 
information for ex- 
hibits for 257 

management of 253 

objects of 252 

premium list for. . . 255 
securing premiums 

for 257 

side issues for 263 

shrinkage in storage. . . . 126 

sold at auctions 209 

stands in the cities 221 

statistics 248 

storage ' 85 

transportation 134 



INDEX 



281 



G 

Page 

Gathering statistics of fruit. 248 

Gift fruit packages 40 

Good box packing requirements 72 
Government reports on fruit. . 248 

Grades of fruit defined 25 

Grading fruit 32 

fruit by machinery .... 34-36 

cost of 39 

principles involved in. . 35 
table 32 



H 

Handling fruit for pre-cooling 143 

fruit in shows 273-278 

fruit through cooperative 

warehouses 197 

fruit with care in har- 
vesting 9 

of fruit by commission 

men 167 

of fruit for storage 87 

package material 49 

Harvesting almonds 7 

apples 4 

cherries 5 

figs 5 

fruit by contract 18, 19 

fruit by day labor 18, 19 

fruit by tree or package.18, 19 

grapes 7 

of fruit 1-20 

pears 4 

persimmons 7 

prunes 7 

records 20 

the more perishable fruits 4 

Heat conducting power of in- 
sulating materials 96 

Home fruit market 154 

House for packing fruit 22 

How fruit is judged at shows 273 
to count the apples in a 
box 68 

Humidity in storage houses . . 110 



Ice-brine system of refrigera- 
tion 101 

Ice refrigeration 100 



Paste 
Insulating materials applied 97 

materials table 97 

value of different mate- 
rials 96 

Insulation of storage houses 95 
International Apple Shippers' 

Association 239 

advertising agencies of. . 243 

committees of 241 

membership in 239 

objects of 239 

publications of 243 

publicity work of 243 

statistical work of 242 



J 

Jobbers of fruit 232 

Judges for fruit shows 267 

Judging fruit shows 267 



K 

Keeping of fruit in storage . . 119 
qualities of fruit in stor- 
age 119 

Kinds of fruit packages .... 42-50 

of fruit storages 88 

L 

Labeling fruit packages 82 

Labor for fruit harvesting. . . 18 

Ladders for low-headed trees. 14 

used in picking fruit. . .12-15 

used in the West 14 

Laws affecting fruit packages 46 
affecting grades of f ruit.28-30 

for Canada 30 

for Maine 29 

for New York 29 

for United States 29 

for western states 30 

Laws relating to the labeling 

of fruit packages 83 

Layer as used in box packs. . 67 
Lithographed labels for pack- 
ages 84 

Loading fruit into cars 147 

Local cold storage houses .... 91 



282 



INDEX 



M 

Page 

Making apple barrels 50-55 

apple boxes 50 

Managing pickers 18 

Market reports for fruit 249 

Marketing fruit 152 

fruit by cooperation .... 174 
Markets for fruit discussed 

159-165 
Material for fruit packages. . 47 
Materials for insulating stor- 
ages 95 

Maturity of fruit affecting its 

keeping in storage. . . . 119 
of fruit at harvesting time 1 

Mechanical fruit graders 34 

refrigeration 100-105 

Mechanics of cold storage. . . 100 
Methods of insulating stor- 
age houses 97 

Motor trucks for short hauls 151 
Moving fruit to markets. . . . 144 
the fruit to the packing 
house 16 

N 

Nail strippers 77 

Nailing devices for boxes. ... 76 

Names of box packs 69 

National League of Commis- 
sion merchants 237 

history of 237 

purpose of 238 

Non-profit sharing organiza- 
tions 175 

North American Fruit Ex- 
change 230 

methods of selling 232 

organization of 230 

North Pacific Fruit Distrib- 
utors 224 

first year's result of. . . . 227 

organization of 224 

reasons for success of. . 228 

selling methods of 225 



Objects of fruit storage 85 

Ocean freight for fruit 146 

Offset pack for boxed apples. 66 
Organizing cooperative ex- 
changes 175 



P 

Tage 

Package laws 40 

material 47 

Packages for shipping fruit. 43-50 
for the various fruits . . 43-50 

of standard sizes 46 

Packing apples in barrels. ... 57 

facing the head 59 

filling in 60 

heading 62 

nailing the head and 

hoops 58 

nailing up after filling. . 62 

preparing the barrel .... 57 

racking the barrel 60 

use of follower 61 

Packing fruit in boxes 63 

house and storage cellar 23 

house for individual. ... 23 

for organization 24 

Pails used in picking fruit. . 11 

Paper used in fruit packing. 56 

Parcel post for shipping fruit 138 

Physiology of fruit 131 

Picking bags 11 

fruit with stems on or off 8 

ladders 12 

lemons and olives 5 

receptacles 10 

Piling apples on the ground. 14 

Pipes in storage rooms 107 

Points on judging fruit 273 

Pre-cooling fruit 139 

plants for fruit 140 

Preparing the box for apples.63-66 

the fruit for market 22 

Primary coils in storage 

houses 103 

Private car lines for shipping 

fruit 137 

Public storages 92 

Push-carts in the cities 222 

R 

Removing the fruit from the 

tree 9 

Requirements of a good box 

pack 72 

for alignment 7f'» 

for bulge 74 

for compactness 75 

for a storage house 89 

of fruit for storage 86 

of fruit packages 40 



INDEX 



283 



Page 

Retailing fruit. 216-220 

Ripening pears in the dark. 5 
Rots affecting fruit in storage 127 
Rules for packing fruit by as- 
sociations 77 

s 

Score card for judging fruit 

269-272 
Secondary coils for storage. . 103 
Seed as a test of maturity in 

fruit 3 

Selling fruit 167 

fruit at home 154 

fruit away from home. . . 155 
fruit bill of lading at- 
tached 206 

fruit f . o. b 204 

fruit in bulk 40 

fruit on consignment .... 205 

fruit on track 204 

fruit through auctions. . 209 
fruit through coopera- 
tive organizations. 203-215 
fruit through express 

companies 216 

fruit to retailers 216 

Shipping fruit by boat 150 

fruit by express 135 

fruit by parcel post 138 

Shrinkage of fruit in storage 126 
Side pack for fruit explained 71 
Size of fruit affecting keeping 

qualities 120 

Sizing board for fruit grading 33 
Sorting fruit into grades. ... 32 
Special fruit organizations . . . 223 
Standard grades for fruit. . . 26 

Starting the box pack 65 

Stencils for labeling packages 84 
Storage effecting the ripening- 

of fruit 119. 132 

house construction 94 

house prices for fruit. . . 113 
Of fruit 85 



Page 
Storage relation to tempera- 
ture and decay 130 

Straight pack for boxed apples 66 
Style of packs for boxed apples 66 
Sub-departments of exchanges 192 

advertising 195 

field organization 195 

legal 194 

purchasing 196 

statistical 193 

traffic 193 

Successions of fruit picking. 9 
Supply and demand discussed 159 



T 

Table of box packs 70 

Temperature of storage houses 93 

Terms used in box packing. . . 65 
Testing fruit markets by trial 

shipments 4 

Tier as used in box packing. . 67 

Time to pick fruit 1 

Tramp labor for harvesting 

fruit 18 

Transportation of fruit 134 



Variation of fruit in different 

sections 3 

Varieties of fruit for storage 133 

Veneer for fruit packages. . . 48 

Ventilating storage houses . . . 109 

w 

Wagons for moving fruit. ... 16 

Warehouses of exchanges. . . . 197 

When to pick fruit 2 

Where the markets for fruit 

are 152 

Wrapping apples for box packs 71 
Wrappers affecting fruit in 

storage 123 



























\<F • 



>A 













\ w ft 





O* k 











i''">;i^Sr'J&:X' r '>>iS, ; S 






» ^ 



o ^°* 









\^ 



c 












'^o* 










o 


















